Seven people described as criminal gang leaders were...

Seven people described as criminal gang leaders were sentenced to death by a court in north China's Taiyuan city and executed.
The seven were leaders of three criminal gangs that engaged in theft, kidnapping, gun trafficking and blackmail, Xinhua News Agency said.
The convicts amassed a huge fortune through underground gambling and recovered players' debts by force, it said, adding some of them tortured one victim to death.
"These vicious gangs have become tumours of society and significantly threaten people's daily life," Xinhua said, quoting the court.