China gives gang leader death sentence for rapes

BEIJING, July 16 (Reuters) A Chinese court has sentenced to death the ringleader of a juvenile gang responsible for the rape of more than 40 girls, the Xinhua news agency said today.

Guo Hongzhen received the sentence from the Bozhou Intermediate People's Court in the eastern province of Anhui yesterday, Xinhua said.

The court also handed down the death penalty with a two-year reprieve to four other gang members, life imprisonment to five and jail terms ranging from six to 20 years to more than 30 others, the official news agency said.

The gang, whose members included more than 40 juveniles, raped middle school students and other underage females in Woyang county between 2004 and 2006, either by force or by using drugs or alcohol, Xinhua said.

The youngest of the defendants was only 13 and the oldest was 20 when they committed the crimes.

''The nature of their crimes was extremely vicious and the details were utterly abominable,'' Xinhua quoted the court as saying.

Xinhua did not say how old Guo was, but under Chinese law those who were under 18 when they committed a crime cannot be sentenced to death.

The defendants will be able to appeal their sentences to a provincial-level court. A death penalty with a two-year reprieve is normally commuted to life imprisonment on condition of good behaviour.

REUTERS KK KN1815