HARBIN -- A 33-year-old man who murdered six children after sexually assaulting them in northeast China was executed on Sunday.

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Gong Runbo had been convicted at the Intermediate People's Court of Jiamusi City, Heilongjiang province, of rape and the murders of the six children aged nine to 16.

The court heard he lured the children off street and from Internet cafe to his rented apartment in Jiamusi from March 2005 to February 2006. He also lured and molested five others aged 12 and 13.

He was arrested on February 28, when a boy managed to escape from the apartment and called the police.

Gong was sentenced to death on July 13 and was ordered to pay 661,840 yuan (84,743 U.S. dollars) to the victims.

He had pleaded guilty and said he would not appeal.

The victims appealed to the court to seek compensation from the Internet cafe and apartment owners.

The Heilongjiang Provincial Higher People's Court rejected the appeals and upheld the verdict on December 20.

From January 1, 2007, the Supreme People's Court will reassume authority over the approval of death penalties for the first time since it was devolved to provincial higher courts during a crackdown on crime in the early 1980s.