25-year detainee cleared of charges

A man who was convicted of murder in Jilin province more than two decades ago has had his name cleared after a retrial, because of unclear facts and insufficient evidence.

Liu Zhonglin, 50, had been wrongfully detained for 25 years and was acquitted Friday at the Jilin Provincial High People's Court.

"He could be the man with the longest wrongful detention announced not guilty in the country," said Zhang Yupeng, Liu's lawyer.

"I'm not excited, as the wait for innocence was a long and difficult one," Liu said.

In October 1990, a woman surnamed Deng was found dead in the province's Dongliao county, and Liu, then 22, was detained and named as a suspect.

In July 1994, Liu was given a suspended death sentence for homicide at the Liaoyuan Intermediate People's Court, and a year later the high people's court of Jilin province upheld the ruling. Since then, Liu and his family have appealed constantly.

In March 2012, the high people's court decided to rehear the case, but the retrial was not opened until 2016. At that time, Liu was released after serving more than 25 years in prison.