New Taipei student injured in scissors attack stable after surgery

New Taipei, Sept. 25 (CNA) A high school student who was injured in a scissors attack in New Taipei's Ruifang District on Thursday has begun showing stable vital signs after undergoing surgery, according to the Keelung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital.

The student is currently in the hospital's intensive care unit for further observation and treatment, the hospital said Friday.

The hospital said it would not disclose further details about the student's condition because he is still a minor and urged the public to respect the privacy of the boy and his family.

The incident occurred at around 4:15 p.m. Thursday when two students got into a confrontation on Minsheng Street. One of them, a junior high school student, then allegedly proceeded to use a pair of scissors to stab the other student.

Emergency responders who arrived at the scene said the 16-year-old victim was found unconscious with a neck wound and went into cardiac arrest before arriving at the Keelung hospital.

According to the Ruifang police precinct, police found that the two students attended the same private school and that the alleged assailant, who subsequently turned himself in, told police the victim had mocked him in the past and provoked him again that day.

Police, however, did not disclose their names or the school they attended.

The school, which has both a high school and junior high school, said in a statement that it was deeply saddened and concerned by the incident, which happened off campus.

It said the incident appeared to be an isolated case and that the two students were not well acquainted and had no reported history of bullying at the school.

The school said it found, based on the initial results of its investigation, that the two boys first argued on a bus after school because one of them was talking too loudly, then got into another argument while waiting in line to buy drinks at a beverage shop.

Following his arrest, the junior high school student was transferred by police to the Keelung District Court's juvenile division Thursday night.

The court said Friday it had ordered him detained and sent the suspect to the Taipei Juvenile Detention House.