Police have detained a man accused of killing three people in a violent rampage in which he ran over pedestrians and stabbed passers-by in Zhejiang province.

The suspect, identified as Wang, 42, was taken into custody at 11:15 pm on Saturday at a friend's home, where he had been hiding out, the authorities said.

He is accused of stabbing a woman in Ningbo's Beilun district around 6 pm before going on to attack 17 others by ramming them in stolen cars or slashing them with a knife. Police said three people died.

According to the initial police investigation, Wang went to a party at noontime and got drunk. In the afternoon, he went to a karaoke bar, where he quarreled with a man surnamed Chen before his friends intervened.

Seeking revenge, Wang went to Chen's home at 6 pm armed with two fruit knives bought at a nearby supermarket, but Chen was not there, police said, adding that Wang stabbed Chen's mother and ran away.

He stole a car to escape but collided with a moped, which caused the car to catch fire. He injured two more people and stole another car at the Dahaixian crossing, before driving into nine people and, after getting out of the vehicle, stabbing five others, according to the police report.

In addition to the deceased, 12 were hospitalized with injuries that are not life-threatening, and three were discharged from hospital after treatment for minor wounds.