China News Service, Hechi, February 13 (Zhou Changlin, Lu Dongri, Chen Junwen) - After catching five sheep thieves, villagers from Lishan Village in Anma Township of Yizhou City in Guangxi Province tied them up on the basketball court for "interrogation" and proceeded to beat them, resulting in one death and four injuries. On February 13, 18 villagers from the township suspected of causing death by injury were criminally detained by the public security authorities.
According to the Yizhou police, when they arrived at the basketball court where the incident occurred on the evening of February 3, they found a long-haired young man already dead. After preliminary investigation and on-site inspection, the police determined that this was a case of fatal injury caused by a sheep theft incident. The deceased was Zhou from Chanshang Village in Mu Zhai Village, adjacent to Lishan Village. The cause of death was being struck on the back of the head with a blunt object, leading to cerebral hemorrhage and death. That night, the Public Security Bureau established a special task force to conduct the investigation.
Villagers who witnessed the event reported that around 7 p.m. that evening, Li from Lishan Village discovered that one of his black goats had been stolen. He then organized the villagers to search everywhere. Later, at the roadside near the village entrance, he found Zhou and four others transporting his black goat on a tricycle, so he intercepted them and brought them back to the village, tying them up on the basketball court for "interrogation." Seeing the "sheep thieves" captured, the villagers were filled with righteous indignation, especially those who had previously had their sheep stolen. They became highly impulsive and began beating the five "sheep thieves." In the chaos, Zhou was struck on the head with a blunt object and fell unconscious, while the other four were also injured to varying degrees.
Realizing the severity of the situation after seeing Zhou lying motionless on the ground, the villagers who participated in the beating stopped and hurriedly called the police and the hospital for an ambulance. However, it was too late. Zhou died from severe injuries.
Due to the lateness of the hour when the incident occurred, combined with the chaotic scene, numerous people present, and unwillingness of witnesses to testify, the investigation progressed very slowly. To break the deadlock, the police visited each household to interview the villagers. After three days and nights, they finally completed interviews and investigations with more than 200 villagers. Under the patient education and sincere persuasion of the police officers, the villagers began providing clues. After several more days and nights of investigation, the police finally identified 18 main suspects, including Li, and summoned them to the Public Security Bureau for questioning. Faced with the evidence, Li and other suspects confessed to participating in the beating of Zhou and others.
According to Mo, one of the individuals involved in the sheep theft and who was beaten, on February 1, he invited three young men from the village to install traps in the "Niu Dong" mountain area bordering Lishan Village, planning to catch some wild game for a feast. On February 3, when Mo returned to the place where the traps were set, he discovered a black goat weighing over 60 jin (about 60 lbs). Overjoyed, Mo immediately called Zhou and four others from the same village to drive over and help carry the goat home. Unfortunately, they were caught red-handed by Li and over ten other villagers, ultimately leading to this tragedy.
The case is currently under further investigation and review.
End of report.