Man behind homicide, schoolyard burial executed

Du Shaoping, who killed and buried a man under a school playground 17 years ago in Hunan province, was executed on Monday after China's top court approved his death penalty.

Du was convicted of multiple crimes, including intentional homicide, intentional injury, disturbance of public order and illegal detention, and sentenced to death by the Huaihua Intermediate People's Court on Dec 18, 2019, after he was identified as the killer of Deng Shiping and as someone involved in burying him under the running track of Xinhuang No 1 Middle School in 2003.

Du appealed to the Hunan High People's Court but the appeal was rejected and the original ruling was upheld by the high court on Jan 10.

Under Chinese Criminal Procedure Law, a death sentence given by lower courts should be submitted to the Supreme People's Court, the national top court, for a review, and the execution will be done only when the top court approves.

The Huaihua Intermediate People's Court issued a statement via its official website saying Du had been executed on Monday after the top court approved the death sentence on Thursday.

Before the execution, the intermediate people's court arranged for Du to meet his family members to fully protect his legitimate rights, the statement added.

According to the original ruling, Du hired Luo Guangzhong to manage the running track construction of the school after undertaking the building project in December 2001. Du was angry with Deng, who was in charge of the construction quality at the time.

On Jan 22, 2003, Du, with Luo, killed Deng in an office of the construction command, and then the two defendants buried Deng in a pit of the playground that night. The next day, Luo ordered those driving forklifts to fill the pit up.

Luo was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve for intentional homicide on Dec 18 last year, and his conviction and sentence were both approved by the high people's court on Jan 10.