Mother in desperate plea after teen attack
Source: Xinhua |
February 28, 2012, Tuesday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
POLICE in eastern China's Anhui Province have promised to continue an investigation into a teenage assault after the victim's mother posted a desperate note for help on the Internet.
Police said the suspect, a 17-year-old boy surnamed Tao, had been detained since last September in Hefei, the provincial capital, for allegedly setting fire to a girl who turned him down.
Police previously said they could not proceed with the investigation because hospitalization of the victim had postponed forensic tests.
The case caused a public outcry after the victim's mother went online last week to call for help, describing the gruesome details of the assault and posting photos of her daughter's bandage-wrapped face.
A hospital diagnosis indicated that about 32 percent of the girl's body had been burned.
Tao and the girl, surnamed Zhou, both studied in a middle school in Hefei. Zhou had been shunning Tao before her parents got her on sick leave for a year and arranged for her to transfer schools to avoid the boy.
Frustrated and angry, Tao, the son of a couple who are low-level officials, went to Zhou's home, poured gasoline on her face, and lit it with a lighter. Zhou's aunt heard screams and came to her rescue, putting the fire out and rushing Zhou to hospital. Tao was arrested the next day.
Zhou's mother said in her online note that the family had been struggling to pay for treatment and she hoped the case could be processed faster so the family could get compensation to cover the costs.
A taboo in the past, teen love has crept back into the public arena in China in recent years. Teenagers have become bolder in showing their feelings and sometimes displaying their emotions to the extreme.
Tao's father tweeted a public apology, saying he was sorry for the failure in parenting that resulted in "irreversible harm" to Zhou and endless sorrow to her family.
"Such a tragedy should not have happened. The future of both kids are ruined," the father wrote. "Tao looks like a grown-up but he is still immature and can not properly handle his emotions well.
"I will not shun away from the legal responsibility," he said.
Local police said they were only allowed to carry out forensic tests on Zhou last Friday after her discharge from intensive care. The results of the tests will help prosecutors determine charges.
China's criminal code rules that a person can get up to 10 years in prison for intentional assault.
Police said the suspect, a 17-year-old boy surnamed Tao, had been detained since last September in Hefei, the provincial capital, for allegedly setting fire to a girl who turned him down.
Police previously said they could not proceed with the investigation because hospitalization of the victim had postponed forensic tests.
The case caused a public outcry after the victim's mother went online last week to call for help, describing the gruesome details of the assault and posting photos of her daughter's bandage-wrapped face.
A hospital diagnosis indicated that about 32 percent of the girl's body had been burned.
Tao and the girl, surnamed Zhou, both studied in a middle school in Hefei. Zhou had been shunning Tao before her parents got her on sick leave for a year and arranged for her to transfer schools to avoid the boy.
Frustrated and angry, Tao, the son of a couple who are low-level officials, went to Zhou's home, poured gasoline on her face, and lit it with a lighter. Zhou's aunt heard screams and came to her rescue, putting the fire out and rushing Zhou to hospital. Tao was arrested the next day.
Zhou's mother said in her online note that the family had been struggling to pay for treatment and she hoped the case could be processed faster so the family could get compensation to cover the costs.
A taboo in the past, teen love has crept back into the public arena in China in recent years. Teenagers have become bolder in showing their feelings and sometimes displaying their emotions to the extreme.
Tao's father tweeted a public apology, saying he was sorry for the failure in parenting that resulted in "irreversible harm" to Zhou and endless sorrow to her family.
"Such a tragedy should not have happened. The future of both kids are ruined," the father wrote. "Tao looks like a grown-up but he is still immature and can not properly handle his emotions well.
"I will not shun away from the legal responsibility," he said.
Local police said they were only allowed to carry out forensic tests on Zhou last Friday after her discharge from intensive care. The results of the tests will help prosecutors determine charges.
China's criminal code rules that a person can get up to 10 years in prison for intentional assault.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
