Five officials have been removed from their posts in Pingyu
County of Henan
Province, central China, for their negligence in a serial
murder case, when the killing of 17 high-school students went
unnoticed by local police and school authorities.
Those dismissed include the heads of the county's public
security bureau, education and sport bureau, and culture bureau,
and of the No. 1 and No. 2 high schools.
According to a decision made by the city government of
Zhumadian, where Pingyu County is located, principal leading
officials in Pingyu will be punished, as their negligence allowed
the culprit to continue his killing spree.
According to previous reports, Huang Yong, a 29-year old martial
arts film fan in Pingyu, started his killing spree in September
2001. During the following two years, he kidnapped and tortured to
death 17 high-school students. Local police did not detect the
murders, until early this month, when the 18th victim, also a
high-school boy, reported to the police after escaping from
Huang.
(Xinhua News Agency November 30, 2003)