15 People Hospitalized After Stabbing, Chemical Attack at Tire Factory

A man has been arrested after allegedly stabbing and injuring 15 people at a tire factory the day after the Christmas holiday.

The incident happened on Friday, Dec. 26 at a factory for tiremaker Yokohama Rubber Co. in Mishima, Japan, which is located about 75 miles southwest of Tokyo, according to the Associated Press, CBS News and The Japan Times.

The man allegedly stabbed eight people at the factory, who were all transported to nearby hospitals, according to AP, which cited the Fujisan Nanto Fire Department. Five of those stabbing victims were reported to have been transported in serious condition.

The suspect is also believed to have used a chemical, believed to be bleach, to injure seven others. Those victims were also transported to nearby hospitals for treatment, the outlets reported. It is unclear what condition they were in. 

Those injured in the attack were all conscious at the time first responders arrived onto the scene, according to The Japan Times, which cited NHK.

The suspect in the attack hasn’t been publicly identified, though it was reported to be a 38-year-old man. The Fujisan Nanto Fire Department told AP that the man was arrested for alleged attempted murder at the factory and that no further details were available.

The man was reported to have been connected to the factory, though it is unclear if he was a worker there, The Japan Times reported. He was seen entering the tire factory wearing what appeared to be a gas mask and carrying a survival knife, the AP reported, citing Japanese newspaper Asahi.

Yokohama Rubber Co. is known for manufacturing tires for trucks and businesses, according to its website. It has factories worldwide, including 59 in Japan, 40 across Europe and 23 in North America. The company employs more than 34,000 people.

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Japan has strict gun control laws and has lower murder rates than most other countries in the world. However, there have still been recent instances of violent crimes. 

In May, a 43-year-old man, Yoshitaka Toda, was charged with attempted murder over a knife attack that injured two people at Tokyo’s Toda-mae metro station, per Barrons. Another man was sentenced to death in October for a 2023 attack that killed four people, including two police officers, according to The Japan Times.