Nearly two dozen dead in knife attack near Tokyo, police say

TOKYO, July 25 (UPI) -- Nearly two dozen people were killed Monday after a knife attack at a care facility for disabled patients near Tokyo early Tuesday, authorities said.

According to police, at least 19 people have been killed and dozens more were wounded in the attack.

The suspect, identified by NHK World as 26-year-old Satoshi Uematsu, is a former employee who turned himself in to police at in the city of Sagamihara, news reports said.

Experts say such a violent mass attack is extremely rare in Japan.

"I want to get rid of the disabled from this world," the man reportedly told police, according to Asahi Shimbun newspaper.

About 150 people, some as young as 18, who suffer from learning and physical disabilities, reside in the facility full time, NHK reported.