Reuters AlertNet Lite - China sentences oil thieves to death

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China sentences oil thieves to death

28 Jul 2007 08:15:53 GMT
Source: Reuters

SHANGHAI, July 28 (Reuters) - China has sentenced to death two leaders of a gang which stole crude oil by drilling into pipelines, causing 400 million yuan ($53 million) in damage, the official Xinhua News Agency said on Saturday.

A court in Dongying city, in the eastern province of Shandong, gave a suspended death sentence to another gang member on Friday and sentenced seven others to prison terms ranging from three years to life.

In 2005 the gang slipped into a seabed oil extraction centre at China's Shengli oilfield and drilled into a pipeline, but fled when they found it contained natural gas instead of oil. A month later, they stole 10 tons of crude oil from a nearby pipeline, Xinhua said.

The holes in the pipes were not discovered until months later, by which time the leaks had disrupted local fisheries.

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Last updated:Sat Jul 28 08:16:55 2007