Guo Zhongmin (郭忠民) was born around 1967 and lived in Gaoheshanggou village, Yangjiao Township, Huludao City, Liaoning Province, China. He was a rural resident and farmer who lived a relatively ordinary life in a tight‑knit farming community. Reports describe him as quiet but quick‑tempered, especially regarding issues involving land and property boundaries — a common source of conflict in China’s rural areas during that time.

In the months leading up to the murders, Guo became embroiled in a bitter land dispute with a neighbor, Zhang Baohua, over the construction of a vegetable greenhouse on a parcel of land both men claimed. When Zhang filed a lawsuit against Guo, the court ruled in Zhang’s favor. The loss deeply humiliated Guo and damaged his standing in the village. He also came to believe that two other neighbors — Liu Changrui and Guo Zhongren (his cousin) — had testified against him or supported Zhang in court.

From that point on, Guo was consumed by resentment and paranoia. According to police investigators later, he began making statements about getting revenge and was seen withdrawing from his usual daily routines. On the morning of February 18, 2003, he sent his wife and children away from the village — a calculated move that suggested premeditation rather than a moment of rage.

On February 18, 2003, Guo Zhongmin armed himself with a kitchen knife and a wooden stick and walked to the homes of his three neighbors in Gaoheshanggou village, in what became one of the deadliest mass murders in modern Liaoning Province history.

He first entered the home of Liu Changrui (62), whom he blamed for siding against him. Inside, he killed eight members of the Liu family, including Liu’s wife Liu Changyu (59), their two adult daughters, a 12‑year‑old grandson, a 5‑year‑old granddaughter, and two extended relatives. Witnesses later reported that the victims had been attacked with both blunt‑force and stabbing injuries to the head and upper body, suggesting that Guo struck with extreme fury.

He then proceeded to the home of his cousin, Guo Zhongren, killing him, his wife, and their son. Finally, he attacked the house of Zhang Baohua, his main adversary in the land dispute, murdering Zhang and Zhang’s brother‑in‑law, Li Guoren. By the time the hour‑long rampage ended, 13 people lay dead across three homes.

Guo fled the scene on foot, suffering a severe cut to his left hand during the struggle. Within thirty minutes of the first police report, the Huludao Municipal Public Security Bureau formed a special task force and issued a Class A nationwide warrant for his arrest. Authorities mobilized over 1,000 officers from the Liaoning Provincial Public Security Bureau, set up checkpoints at railway stations, bus terminals, and main highways, and broadcast Guo’s photo and description on television and radio.

For the next five days, Guo survived by begging and threatening rural residents in the Lianshan district area. He was spotted on February 19 receiving treatment for his hand injury at a clinic in Beidi village and again on February 20 when he begged for food in Beigou village. On February 21, he broke into a home in Yangjiao Township, threatening to kill a family if they did not give him food and money. He took 30 yuan and a change of clothes before disappearing again.

On the evening of February 22, Guo visited a pesticide store in Huludao owned by an acquaintance. After failing to obtain cash, he stole a bottle of pesticide and a bicycle parked outside, then left the city heading south toward Hebei Province.

The manhunt ended on February 23, 2003, when police cornered Guo at Shahe Town railway station in Suizhong County. As officers moved in to arrest him, Guo drank the pesticide he had stolen the previous night. Despite immediate medical assistance, he died at the scene. The case was formally closed that day.