Man stabs to death in Taiwan a store clerk who asked him to put on a facemask

Taiwanese police arrested a man accused of stabs to death a supermarket employee who asked him to put on a mask, Taiwanese media reported Monday.

Man stabs to death a store clerk who asked him to put on a facemask

The suspect, surnamed Chiang, went to the store, located in Taoyuan, in the north of the island, at 4 a.m. Sunday (20.00 GMT Saturday) and left after an argument with the clerk, who asked him to put on a mask.

Shortly afterward, Chiang returned to the store and threw a mask at the clerk’s face, according to local police station chief Feng Li-tse, who was quoted in local media.

Chiang claimed after his arrest that he was suffering from psychological problems and had no memory of the alleged murder.

According to Feng, Chiang returned a third time to the store at 5:25 a.m. (21:25 GMT Saturday) armed with a knife, with which he made several stab wounds to the chest of the employee, who died shortly afterwards at a hospital to which he had been taken after witnesses called an ambulance.

According to CNA news agency, Chiang claimed after his arrest that he was suffering from psychological problems and had no memory of the alleged murder.

Masks remain mandatory in Taiwan as a precaution against covid-19.

Since the start of the pandemic, 848 deaths from covid have been recorded on the island, which has a population of 23 million.