On December 24, one Indonesian and 12 mainland Chinese...

On December 24, one Indonesian and 12 mainland Chinese pirates were sentenced to death for their role in the hijacking of the Cheung Son and the subsequent murder of the 23-strong crew last year. Those sentenced to die include gang leaders Weng Siliang, 27, Indonesian Wei Suoni, 27, and Jia Hongwei, 25, who were convicted of both murder and robbery by Shanwei Intermediate People's Court. The court also imposed a death sentence on Huang Daming, 33, who lent his ship, which was previously used for customs border patrols, that became the mother vessel from where the gang was able to launch its pirate attacks. Huang also provided the pirates with customs officers' uniforms.