4 get death for killing 13 Chinese sailors
Source: Agencies/Shanghai Daily |
November 7, 2012, Wednesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
A court in southwest China sentenced four members of a Myanmar drug gang to death yesterday for kidnapping and killing 13 Chinese sailors last year on the Mekong River.
The grisly murders on a section of Mekong flowing through the Golden Triangle region, which is notorious for drug traffickers and extortion gangs, prompted China, Myanmar, Laos and Thailand to begin joint patrols there last December.
Gang leader Naw Kham was extradited from Laos at the request of Chinese authorities in May. He and three members of his gang were sentenced to death by the People's Intermediate Court in Kunming, capital of Yunnan Province.
Another gang member was given a suspended death sentence and one was sentenced to eight years in prison.
All six defendants were charged with intentional homicide, drug trafficking, kidnapping and ship hijacking. All told the court they would appeal.
They also were ordered to pay a total of 6 million yuan (US$960,000) in compensation to the victims' families.
About 300 people were present at yesterday's first instance trial, including relatives and friends of the victims, diplomats from Laos and Thailand and the press. The defendants wore headphones through which translation services were offered.
Nine Thai soldiers accused of taking part in the killings previously surrendered but have not been tried or extradited. They are in Thai military custody and are suspected of murder and concealing evidence, Deputy National Police Chief Pansiri Prapawat told The Associated Press.
Naw Kham ordered his ring to attack and kill the 13 Chinese sailors on two cargo ships, the Hua Ping and Yu Xing 8, on October 5, 2011, on the Mekong because they refused to pay protection money, according to officials.
The ring members carried more than 80 kilograms of drugs aboard to frame the sailors. When the ships entered Thailand, the sailors were shot to death.
Following the massacre, the Thai soldiers, believed to have been bribed by Naw Kham, opened fire at the two ships with machine guns and threw the bodies into the river, witnesses and officials said.
The soldiers said they found an armed crew on the boats and seized guns and drugs on the vessels.
However, corpses found in the river were blindfolded and some of the bodies' hands were tied and handcuffed.
With a length of almost 5,000 kilometers, the Mekong River, known in China as the Lancang River, is one of the most important waterways in Southeast Asia, linking the countries of China, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand. It plays a crucial economic role among the Greater Mekong Sub-region countries.
Sailors shipping Chinese produce and manufactured goods down the Mekong have long complained of armed gangs that loot their boats or demand cash.
Little action was taken to protect them until the attack near the Thai-Myanmar border.
All Chinese shipping on the Mekong was suspended after the murders, which sparked outrage in China. The incident was followed by Chinese patrols and strengthened security cooperation among the four countries.
The grisly murders on a section of Mekong flowing through the Golden Triangle region, which is notorious for drug traffickers and extortion gangs, prompted China, Myanmar, Laos and Thailand to begin joint patrols there last December.
Gang leader Naw Kham was extradited from Laos at the request of Chinese authorities in May. He and three members of his gang were sentenced to death by the People's Intermediate Court in Kunming, capital of Yunnan Province.
Another gang member was given a suspended death sentence and one was sentenced to eight years in prison.
All six defendants were charged with intentional homicide, drug trafficking, kidnapping and ship hijacking. All told the court they would appeal.
They also were ordered to pay a total of 6 million yuan (US$960,000) in compensation to the victims' families.
About 300 people were present at yesterday's first instance trial, including relatives and friends of the victims, diplomats from Laos and Thailand and the press. The defendants wore headphones through which translation services were offered.
Nine Thai soldiers accused of taking part in the killings previously surrendered but have not been tried or extradited. They are in Thai military custody and are suspected of murder and concealing evidence, Deputy National Police Chief Pansiri Prapawat told The Associated Press.
Naw Kham ordered his ring to attack and kill the 13 Chinese sailors on two cargo ships, the Hua Ping and Yu Xing 8, on October 5, 2011, on the Mekong because they refused to pay protection money, according to officials.
The ring members carried more than 80 kilograms of drugs aboard to frame the sailors. When the ships entered Thailand, the sailors were shot to death.
Following the massacre, the Thai soldiers, believed to have been bribed by Naw Kham, opened fire at the two ships with machine guns and threw the bodies into the river, witnesses and officials said.
The soldiers said they found an armed crew on the boats and seized guns and drugs on the vessels.
However, corpses found in the river were blindfolded and some of the bodies' hands were tied and handcuffed.
With a length of almost 5,000 kilometers, the Mekong River, known in China as the Lancang River, is one of the most important waterways in Southeast Asia, linking the countries of China, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand. It plays a crucial economic role among the Greater Mekong Sub-region countries.
Sailors shipping Chinese produce and manufactured goods down the Mekong have long complained of armed gangs that loot their boats or demand cash.
Little action was taken to protect them until the attack near the Thai-Myanmar border.
All Chinese shipping on the Mekong was suspended after the murders, which sparked outrage in China. The incident was followed by Chinese patrols and strengthened security cooperation among the four countries.
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