简体中文
The case of a Chinese man who took the law into his own hand by killing three men from the same family to avenge his mother's death over two decades ago has triggered online debate over the meaning of justice.
Zhang Koukou, a 35-year-old veteran living in Hanzhong, northwest China’s Shaanxi Province, stabbed three members from his neighbor's family to death on Lunar New Year’s Eve. He said he did it as a revenge after witnessing his mother’s death, which came after a quarrel with the Wang family over "trivial matters", 22 years ago when he was only 13.
Zhang Koukou, the suspect of a revenge attack, accepted interrogation.
Wang Zhengjun – who was under 18 at the time – confessed to his crime and said the victim, Zhang’s mother, started the fight by spitting in the face of his younger brother, provoking the attack. A court sentenced the juvenile to seven years in prison and asked his family to pay 9,639 yuan (around 1,516 US dollars) to the Zhangs.
The Zhang family however had asked for 250,000 yuan (around 39,000 US dollars) in compensation.
The death of the mother left Zhang’s father alone in raising him and his sister on a very low income.
Zhang's father accepted interviews after the murder happened.
Even though he performed well at school, Zhang dropped out because of economic hardship and joined the army in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.
After retiring from military service, Zhang worked in Guangzhou, a city in south China’s Guangdong Province, and in Argentina. He returned to his hometown in August 2017.
On the Chinese New Year's Eve, Zhang saw the Wangs heading out, so he rushed towards them with a knife and a bottle of gasoline. He also put on a mask.
Zhang repeatedly stabbed Wang Zhengjun and Wang Xiaojun as they returned home, and their father, Wang Zixin. He eventually Zhang broke one of the car windows, poured gasoline on the back seat, before setting it on fire and fleeing the scene.
He turned himself in to the police two days after the incident.
Zhang’s case aroused a heated discussion on China’s Twitter-like Weibo. Thousands of people thought that Zhang was a chivalrous hero since he finally took the lives of his mother's "killers", 22 years later. However, others thought that, even though it could be viewed as an act of righteous vengeance, it still is a criminal act in the eyes of the law.'
(CGTN)
