Mafia figure sentenced to death
From correspondents in Beijing
December 22, 2003
AN accused leader of the Chinese mafia has been sentenced to death despite an earlier court ruling which held his confession was extracted through torture.
"Liu Yong has been sentenced to death for the crime of willfully causing harm," the State Supreme Court said in a statement following its unprecedented ruling.
"He should also be punished for a series of other crimes, and it was decided that the death sentence should be implemented," the decision, carried by Xinhua news agency, said.
In China's judicial system, the ruling likely means that Liu's execution would be carried out immediately.
Liu was originally sentenced to death in April 2002, but during his appeal it was revealed that his confession had been extracted through torture and in August this year he was given a two-year reprieve by the Liaoning provincial high court.
A reprieve on a death sentence often results in life imprisonment.
Liu's retrial, which began last Thursday, marks the first time in the history of the People's Republic of China that the Supreme Court has decided to circumvent the country's two-trial criminal law system and issue a different ruling through an additional trial.
In a sign of its sensitivity, the retrial was carried out by the nation's top court, with Supreme Court officials effectively taking over the court house in Jinzhou city.
Liu, initially convicted of a series of organised crimes such as racketeering, extortion and illegal possession of firearms, was also linked to a series of crimes that brought down the government of Shenyang city, the capital of Liaoning, in 2000.
The retrial came after massive public opinion decried the high court's reprieve on Liu's death penalty and with the central government expressing an eagerness to crackdown harder on corruption.
Liu's office refused to discuss the court ruling when contacted.
Agence France-Presse
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