Five people were sentenced to death in central China...

Five people were sentenced to death in central China for breaching oil pipelines more than 40 times to steal 450 tones of crude oil, the Xinhua News agency said. The 17 members of a gang led by farmer Li Shisheng had stolen oil worth a total of 977,000 yuan (118,000 dollars) between October 2001 and February 2003 in the north of Henan province. Five members of the gang were handed the death sentence and the other 12 received sentences of between three years and life in prison. Damage to the pipelines was estimated at 2.3 million yuan. Li and his gang were found guilty of the "crime of destruction using inflammable and explosive materials" by the Intermediate People's Court of Jiaozuo, which said their actions "seriously harmed public order".