Japan's Joker assailant wanted to "kill lots of people"-police

Kyota Hattori, 24, who was arrested on suspicion of a knife and arson attack incident on the Keio Line train on Halloween day on October 31, 2021, is escorted to the prosecutor's office from the Chofu police station in Tokyo, Japan November 2, 2021 in this photo taken by Kyodo. Mandatory credit Kyodo via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. MANDATORY CREDIT. JAPAN OUT. NO COMMERCIAL OR EDITORIAL SALES IN JAPAN. REFILE - CORRECTING TYPE OF ATTACK

A drifter who admired the Joker from Batman and dressed as him to carry out a Halloween attack on a Tokyo train "wanted to kill lots of people" and planned his moves over months, buying a knife to use in the internet, police and media said on Tuesday.

The stabbing and arson attack, which briefly sent fire flaring in a train carriage, was carried out on Sunday night as many party-goers headed into Tokyo for Halloween celebrations and sent passengers screaming down the aisles of train carriages and scrambling out of windows to escape.

A police officer walks into Kokuryo station of the Keio Line train where a knife and arson attack incident occurred on a train, in Tokyo, Japan November 1, 2021. REUTERS/Issei Kato REFILE - CORRECTING TYPE OF ATTACK

One man in his 70s remains in a serious condition with stab wounds to his torso and 16 others were treated for minor injuries, mostly smoke inhalation, a police spokesman said.

Kyota Hattori, 24 and dressed in multi-coloured clothing as the Joker, was arrested on the spot and later told investigators "I wanted to kill lots of people, I wanted the death penalty," the police spokesman added.

Shown in video footage sitting on a seat in the train carriage calmly smoking a cigarette prior to the attack, Hattori purchased the knife he used over the Internet and was carrying some 4 litres of lighter fluid in plastic bottles when he headed into Tokyo, which was filling with costumed partiers for Halloween, media reports said.

Smoke is seen in a carriage of a Tokyo train line following a knife and arson attack in Japan October 31, 2021 in this still image obtained from a social media video. Twitter/@SIZ33 via REUTERS THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. MANDATORY CREDIT. REFILE - CORRECTING TYPE OF ATTACK

Hattori, who told investigators "things weren't going well with work and friends," may have started planning the attack as early as June when he quit his job in the southwestern city of Fukuoka and began moving east, staying for periods in major cities along the way until he reached Tokyo a month ago, the reports added.

Apparently choosing Halloween because he knew Tokyo would be crowded, Hattori left his hotel in the afternoon and took a train to the Shibuya district, popular with young people and famous for its Halloween street party, where costumed revellers gather to walk around and drink.

After that he took a train away from the city but then changed to another heading back in and filled with people, where he carried out the attack, said the reports, which police declined to confirm.

Rescue workers and police officers work at the site where a knife and arson attack occurred on a train, at the Kokuryo station of the Keio Line train in Tokyo, Japan October 31, 2021 in this photo taken by Kyodo. Mandatory credit Kyodo/via REUTERS

Transport Minister Tetsuo Saito told a news conference on Tuesday the government had told train companies to increase vigilance to prevent further attacks.

"Trains are essential to the life of society, and it's extremely important to be able to feel safe as you ride them," he added.

(Reporting by Elaine Lies)

Media members gather outside Kokuryo station of the Keio Line train where a knife and arson attack occurred on a train in Tokyo, Japan November 1, 2021. REUTERS/Issei Kato