Shijiazhuang bombings
Encyclopedia
The Shijiazhuang bombings (Chinese
: or “3·16”) were a series of bomb blasts that rocked the city of Shijiazhuang
, China
on March 16, 2001. A total of 108 people were killed, and 38 others injured when within a short period of time several bombs exploded near four apartment buildings. A single man, Jin Ruchao (靳如超), was blamed and arrested for planning and carrying out the bombings. The People's Daily reported that he used taxis to get to each destination. After pleading guilty, Jin was sentenced to death
and executed
, along with three others who supplied Jin with about 1,300 pounds of homemade explosives. Jin was motivated by hatred for his ex-wife, ex-mother-in-law and a lover; he had previously threatened to blow up their buildings.
The explosives were made from ammonium nitrate and contained in plastic bags marked as "chicken feed". Jin paid 950 RMB
($115) to Wang Yushun, the owner of an illegal explosives workshop near Shijiazhuang. The attack was the biggest mass murder
in China in decades. Following widespread public fear, the Chinese Government published a lengthy description of the bombings. Jin was arrested following a manhunt and a posted 100,000 RMB ($12,000) reward, which had been doubled from an initial 50,000 RMB. There were rumours that Jin was a scapegoat
with no knowledge of explosives, and that the blast could have been orchestrated by disaffected ex-employees of who had been laid-off in China's restructuring. On 29 April 2001, Jin Ruchao, Wang Yushun (王玉顺), and Hao Fengqin (郝凤琴) received the death penalty
for their roles in the bombings.
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
: or “3·16”) were a series of bomb blasts that rocked the city of Shijiazhuang
Shijiazhuang
Shijiazhuang is the capital and largest city of North China's Hebei province. Administratively a prefecture-level city, it is about south of Beijing...
, China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
on March 16, 2001. A total of 108 people were killed, and 38 others injured when within a short period of time several bombs exploded near four apartment buildings. A single man, Jin Ruchao (靳如超), was blamed and arrested for planning and carrying out the bombings. The People's Daily reported that he used taxis to get to each destination. After pleading guilty, Jin was sentenced to death
Capital punishment in the People's Republic of China
Capital punishment in the People's Republic of China is currently administered for a variety of crimes, but the vast majority of executions are for cases of either aggravated murder or large scale drug trafficking...
and executed
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
, along with three others who supplied Jin with about 1,300 pounds of homemade explosives. Jin was motivated by hatred for his ex-wife, ex-mother-in-law and a lover; he had previously threatened to blow up their buildings.
The explosives were made from ammonium nitrate and contained in plastic bags marked as "chicken feed". Jin paid 950 RMB
Chinese yuan
The yuan is the base unit of a number of modern Chinese currencies. The yuan is the primary unit of account of the Renminbi.A yuán is also known colloquially as a kuài . One yuán is divided into 10 jiǎo or colloquially máo...
($115) to Wang Yushun, the owner of an illegal explosives workshop near Shijiazhuang. The attack was the biggest mass murder
Mass murder
Mass murder is the act of murdering a large number of people , typically at the same time or over a relatively short period of time. According to the FBI, mass murder is defined as four or more murders occurring during a particular event with no cooling-off period between the murders...
in China in decades. Following widespread public fear, the Chinese Government published a lengthy description of the bombings. Jin was arrested following a manhunt and a posted 100,000 RMB ($12,000) reward, which had been doubled from an initial 50,000 RMB. There were rumours that Jin was a scapegoat
Scapegoat
Scapegoating is the practice of singling out any party for unmerited negative treatment or blame. Scapegoating may be conducted by individuals against individuals , individuals against groups , groups against individuals , and groups against groups Scapegoating is the practice of singling out any...
with no knowledge of explosives, and that the blast could have been orchestrated by disaffected ex-employees of who had been laid-off in China's restructuring. On 29 April 2001, Jin Ruchao, Wang Yushun (王玉顺), and Hao Fengqin (郝凤琴) received the death penalty
Capital punishment in the People's Republic of China
Capital punishment in the People's Republic of China is currently administered for a variety of crimes, but the vast majority of executions are for cases of either aggravated murder or large scale drug trafficking...
for their roles in the bombings.
See also
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