Guangzhou man sentenced to death for wife's murder

A man who stabbed his wife to death during their divorce cooling-off period was sentenced to death in Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong province, on Thursday.

The Guangzhou Intermediate People's Court passed the verdict to Zhao Liuchao after a public hearing in the first instance of the trial. Zhao was also deprived of his political power for life.

According to the verdict, the defendant and his victim, surnamed Zhou, registered for marriage in 2011. Due to emotional discord, they applied for a divorce agreement with the Marriage Registration Office of the Civil Affairs Bureau of Pingyu County, Henan province, on July 7, 2023. The office then gave the couple a period to cool off before they formally got divorced.

On the evening of July 30, 2023, Zhou, accompanied by six relatives and friends, made an appointment with Zhao to meet at the entrance of an industrial park in Guangzhou.

Zhao used a sharp knife to directly stab Zhou when they met, resulting in Zhou's death. Zhou's four relatives and friends who attempted to prevent Zhao from approaching Zhou were also injured after Zhao stabbed them.

The court verdict said Zhao intentionally and illegally deprived others of their lives, resulting in one death and four minor injuries. His behavior has constituted the crime of intentional homicide.

Zhao's subjective malice was severe, his criminal methods were cruel, and the consequences were serious. Therefore, according to the court verdict, Zhou should be severely punished according to the law.