Father-to-be's murder attempt backfires

A troubled Chinese man and the pregnant girlfriend he tried to kill in a gas explosion have ended up side-by-side in hospital beds as doctors battle to save their lives.

The young woman's unborn baby has also managed to survive.

Xu Fan, 21, fell pregnant to Li Moulian, 36, after a one-night stand but the pair decided to stay together and moved into a house in Huizhou City, in southern China's Guangdong Province, the MailOnline reports.

Six months into the relationship, the father-to-be apparently snapped.

Li's attack reportedly was sparked by a severe paranoid episode in which he was convinced Xu was trying to kill his parents.

Li attacked Xu while she was asleep, dragging her out of bed and into the back of his car before tying a gas canister to her back.

He then drove around town until police spotted them.

As police attempted to rescue Xu, Li ignited the canister on her back, engulfing them both in flames.

Officers managed to pull Xu from the car and extinguish the flames on her body. They then did the same for Li, who suffered more severe burns.

The pair was then taken to hospital in a life-threatening condition.

The condition of Xu has since improved but Li is not expected to survive.

Source: Mail Online
Author: Erin Tennant, Approving editor: Chloe Ross