Police are searching for a man suspected of killing four primary school kids in the mountainous woodlands of south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

More than 2,000 police and civilians joined the manhunt on Friday in Lingshan County, about 7 kilometers from the crime scene.

As of 8 p.m., they had searched villages and mountains covering an area of 20 square kilometers aided by sniffer dogs.

Police have identified the suspect as a 56-year-old local man surnamed Shi, and found a three-wheeled motor vehicle he discarded on the roadside, ten kilometers from the crime scene.

Four primary school students were killed at around 6:20 a.m. in a knife attack on their way to Gupu Primary School in Pingshan Town. Three died at the scene and one died later in hospital.

A villager surnamed Xie told Xinhua that the suspect is an introvert and does not like to talk much.

"We did not expect that he would do such a cruel thing," Xie said.

Other villagers revealed that Shi is a veteran. He operated a small shop and sometimes carried passengers by his three-wheeled motor vehicle to earn some money.

His motive for the killings is unclear.

The local education authorities have provided necessary psychological rehabilitation and comfort for students in the county.

Police have offered an award of up to 100,000 yuan (about 16,129 US dollars) for information about the suspect.
The search is still underway.