Man shot dead by police after crashing car into lobby of Chinese Consulate
A man was shot dead by police after ramming a car into the lobby of the Chinese Consulate in San Francisco on Monday.
Shocked witnesses report seeing the blue Honda crash into the front of the building and the driver shouting: "Where's the CCP?" as he got out of the car.
San Francisco police were left baffled trying to figure out why the unidentified driver smashed through the front of the consulate, which is located on a major street across from the West Coast city’s Japantown neighbourhood.
In a statement, the Chinese Consulate general described the incident as a “violent attack.” Police rushed to the scene shortly after 3 pm on a report of a vehicle crashing into the building and warned people to avoid the area. Video from the scene showed a blue Honda sedan inside the lobby of the consulate’s visa office.
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A view of crime scene which a suspect rammed into the San Francisco Chinese Consulate (Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)Officers entered the building, made contact with the suspect and opened , San Francisco police Sergeant Kathryn Winters said during a brief news conference. Despite “life-saving efforts” the suspect died at a hospital.
Speaking to the San Francisco Standard, witness Sergii Molchanov, a Stanford student, described the moment the car crashed into the building. He was at the consulate filing documents for a visa when the car drove into the building. He said he was about two metres away from the car, and saw the driver. The driver's head was bleeding and he shouted: "Where's the CCP?" as he got out of the car.
Security guards then apprehended the driver and Mr Molchanov saw one of the guards holding a knife. He said: "He looked at me and I was a little bit scared because I didn’t know if he had any gun or something." The shocked witness joined the people fleeing and within a couple of minutes, police arrived and he heard two gunshots.
Police officers are seen outside the visa office near Japantown (AFP via Getty Images)Police did not describe how the shooting unfolded, how many officers fired or if the driver had a weapon. There were no reports of any injured people inside the building.
Police are working and coordinating with investigators from the U.S. State Department and the Chinese Consulate. “I wish I could give you more but this is a very complex investigation,” Winters said.
A statement from the Chinese Consulate general demanded more details about the incident and asked that it be “dealt with seriously in accordance with the law.”
“Our embassy severely condemns this violent attack,” the statement said.
A view of entrance of San Francisco Chinese Consulate where a suspect rammed the visa office (Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)The San Francisco consulate has been targeted a number of times before. Among the most serious was a fire set by a Chinese man on New Year’s Day 2014 at the main entrance. It charred a section of the outside of the building.
The man, who was living in the San Francisco Bay Area, told authorities he was driven by voices he was hearing. He was sentenced to nearly three years in prison.
Monday’s incident comes as San Francisco prepares to host next month’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, a gathering of world leaders from Pacific Rim nations. President plans to attend but it’s not clear if Chinese President Xi Jinping will come.
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The full statement from the Consulate read: "The mission severely condemns this violent attack and reserves the right to pursue responsibilities related to the incident. Our mission has made solemn representations to the United States, demanding that the truth be quickly ascertained and dealt with seriously in accordance with the law."
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