Society

Farmer gets life sentence for toll evasion

By Zhang Jiawei (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2011-01-11 15:35

A farmer in a Central China city has been sentenced to life imprisonment for evading 3.68 million yuan ($560,000) in highway toll fees in eight months, Dahe Daily reported Tuesday.

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The man, surnamed Shi from Yuzhou city of Henan province, was charged with using fake military vehicle licenses for two of his trucks to pass highway toll booths 2,361 times, causing a 3.68 million-yuan economic loss to the country.

Shi got the fake licenses in May 2008. He changed drivers for his two trucks, which were used to transport sand and stones, every month for fear his practice would be discovered by toll booth workers.

Shi said he used fake military vehicle licenses to save money, and he earned some 200,000 yuan while using the fake licenses until January 2009 when he was taken into custody.

The Pingdingshan Intermediate People's Court, where Shi was convicted, said he didn't appeal the conviction.