August 24, 2012
Translated by Zhu Na

Henan's Dahe Daily reported today that six former employees of China's public security bureau who were found guilty of extorting a confession through torture in the high-profile case of a man who spent 11 years in jail after being convicted of murder he didn't commit, have appealed their sentences.

The case of Zhao Zuohai (赵作海) came to public attention in 2010, when the man Zhao was accused of murdering in 1997 unexpectedly returned to the Henan village he had disappeared from 13 years before. Zhao was quickly cleared of the murder charges, set free and awarded 770,000 yuan in compensation.

Six public security bureau employees who were charged with extorting a confession from Zhao were found guilty by the Longting (龙亭) District Court in Henan's Kaifeng in June this year.  

According to the court, the six defendants extorted a confession from Zhao Zuohai by torture, which led to Zhao being falsely accused of homicide.

Wang Songlin (王松林) and Guo Shouhai (郭守海) were sentenced to two years priseon, Din Zhongqiu (丁中秋) and Luo Mingzhu (罗明珠) were sentenced to prison terms of one year and six months, Si Chongxing (司崇兴) was sentenced for one year and a sixth man Zhou Minghan (周明晗) did not receive a criminal sentence.

The six defendants have appealed their sentences and the Kaifeng City Intermediate People's Court is currently conducting a second hearing of the case.

Links and Sources
Dahe Daily: 冤枉赵作海的6名警察 有5个被判刑