Family claims wrong arrest and seeks compensation

A family in Laiyuan county, Hebei province, which was arrested and then released for killing a home intruder, has demanded an official apology and compensation of over 66,000 yuan ($9,800) from judicial departments, according to a report by thecover.cn on Thursday.

Wang Xinyuan, 53, and Zhao Yinzhi, 54, submitted their applications for the compensation to the People’s Procuratorate of Laiyuan county on Wednesday, which had approved their arrest in August and in March decided not to prosecute them.

The couple killed their daughter’s harasser during an attack on a night in July, when Wang Lei broke into their home in Laiyuan county and confronted them with a baton and two knives.

The family spent a total of 232 days in custody before the release.

According to a statement of Wang Xinyuan, disclosed in the report by thecover.cn, a news website, Wang has sought 66,059.68 yuan for the 232 days’ custody and 300,000 yuan for mental distress, claiming the arrest was wrong and had caused tremendous mental damages.

The family has also asked an official apology from people in the procuratorate and other judicial departments involved in the case.

Their daughter, a university student who was involved in the confrontation, was out on bail for 38 days before the authorities judged her behavior as justifiable defense in February.

She has submitted her application for compensation to the public security bureau in Laiyuan county.

The incident stemmed from her rejection of her harasser Wang Lei.

The two met in January last year at a restaurant in Beijing, where the daughter, who has not been named, worked with her mother during winter vacation.

Wang Lei frequently harassed and threatened the daughter to be his girlfriend. He attacked the daughter and her parents on July 11 after frequent rejections and was killed in the confrontation.