CHINA. SIX ALLEGED MEMBERS OF CRIME GANG SENTENCED TO DEATH

China sentenced six gang members to death for arms dealing, rape, murder, extortion and gambling, state media said. A court in southwest China's Sichuan province sentenced ringleader Ren Bing as well as five henchmen to death, while giving 13 others one to 10-year terms, the China Daily said.
The gang's "reign of terror" lasted from 2000 to 2004 when Ren and his cohorts illegally purchased and sold weapons and later became involved in murder, extortion, gambling and rape.
Their downfall was triggered by an extortion case against Li Sheng, a businessman from southern China's Shenzhen city, in 2004.
Li, who was planning to donate one million yuan (123,762 US dollars) to the county for a new road, was returning to his hotel room in the area when he was stabbed by one of Ren's men. Ren later tried to extort money from Li.
The case prompted local police to arrest the gang members in 2004, at the same time netting corrupt officers who had been protecting them. The case highlighted the increasing collusion between gangs and local government officials and police -- similar to China's pre-revolutionary society. After Ren's men killed a rival gang member in 2003 during a fight, a police officer helped the killer escape, the report added. The officer was given two years in prison, and the killer 20 years.