Assault case: main accused given 24-year sentence

Chen Jizhi, the main man behind the brutal beating of a woman at a barbecue restaurant in Tangshan, Hebei province, in June, was sentenced to 24 years in prison and fined 320,000 yuan ($45,000) for multiple crimes, including intentional injury, a court in Langfang in the province announced on Friday.

According to a verdict by the People's Court of Guangyang District in Langfang, the man committed nine crimes, including picking quarrels and provoking trouble, illegal detention, affray, running casinos and robbery.

Another 27 defendants related to the case and others were sentenced to different periods of time, ranging from six months to 11 years, the court said.

Among them, 19 were fined ranging from 3,000 yuan to 135,000 yuan.

Six of the defendants, including Chen, were ordered to compensate to four victims in the case, including their medical fees and transport costs.

At around 2 am on June 10, four females were dining at the restaurant in Tangshan's Lubei district. During the meal, one of them, surnamed Wang, was harassed by Chen and was beaten by him and others after she refused his advances and rebuked him, the court said.

Her companions were also beaten after they tried to help her.

The four victims suffered mild or minor injuries from the beating.

According to Shi Guizhong, deputy head of the Department of Public Security of Hebei, the case was transferred at the very beginning to public security organs in the province's Langfang city, to avoid possible interference from local authorities in Tangshan and ensure strict and fair law enforcement.