A?man studying abroad was detained this week after he allegedly stabbed his mother, who had come to meet him off his flight home,?Shanghai police said yesterday.

The victim, surnamed Gu, who had been in a coma, was still in hospital last night, although she was in a stable condition.

The attack took place on Tuesday afternoon in a terminal hall at Pudong International Airport after the suspect, surnamed Wang, returned from Japan.

Gu was there to pick him up, said airport police.

But soon after Wang arrived, the two started to quarrel about his tuition fees at the airport.

Wang suddenly took out a knife from his luggage and stabbed his mother several times, local police said yesterday.

Wang was taken into custody by airport police.

Wang is not wealthy and had disputes with his family about education expenses in the past, according to one of his relatives interviewed by Shanghai-based Xinmin.cn.