[Anchor]
 
An 80-year-old man went on a knife rampage at a senior center where residents had gathered to share lunch for Malbok (one of the hottest days of summer), leaving two people injured. The attack reportedly stemmed from a heated argument over how to handle farmland jointly owned by the village.

TBC reporter Kim Nak-sung brings us the report.

[Reporter]

The peaceful senior center was instantly thrown into chaos.

At around 11:40 AM, an 80-year-old man, identified as A, swung a weapon at fellow residents at a senior center in Punggak-myeon, Cheongdo-gun.

The attack left an 80-year-old resident, B, with serious injuries from being stabbed, while the 60-year-old village head, C, sustained minor injuries while trying to break up the fight. Both were transported to a hospital.

Fortunately, neither of their injuries is reported to be life-threatening.

[Village Resident : We are out of our minds right now. We were terribly shocked. They were hurt badly. We were wondering if he could even survive.]

At the time of the incident, residents had gathered at the center to share a meal together for Malbok.

Police and local accounts indicate that during the meal, A and B got into a dispute over what to do with a piece of collectively owned village farmland. A then pulled out a weapon and started swinging it, and the village head was also hurt while trying to intervene.

[Village Resident : The older folks were saying, "Let's sell the land, use the money, and die," while the younger folks were saying, "Let's keep it and use the funds for annual events." They were in the middle of talking about that….]

Residents recounted that A had brought the weapon with him in advance.

[Village Resident : He said, "It's too noisy," pulled a knife out of his pocket, and went at it.... They say he brought it with him.]

Police responding to the emergency call arrested A at the scene on charges of attempted murder, and plan to apply for an arrest warrant.

(Video by Noh Tae-hee, Lee Jung-woo / TBC)

Kim Nak-sung, TBC