Li Tianyi: China court jails army singers' son for rape

BBC News, 26 September 2013

Li Tianyi was previously detained over a traffic altercation

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A court in China has convicted the son of two high-profile army singers and sentenced him to 10 years in jail for rape, state media say.

The court said it had shown leniency to Li Tianyi, 17, because he was a juvenile, despite the fact he was the ringleader.

Li and four others raped the woman at a Beijing hotel in February after drinks.

He had denied any sexual relations with the woman, whom he alleged was working as a prostitute, previous reports say.

Li Tianyi is the son of Li Shuangjiang, who has the rank of general and is known for his renditions of patriotic songs on television. Li's mother Meng Ge is also a well-known singer in China's People's Liberation Army.

Many Chinese have watched the case closely, shocked by the behaviour of the children of China's elites, and the way the police and courts often give them favourable treatment, the BBC's Damian Grammaticas in Beijing reports.

Li, who was 16 at the time of the rape, plans to appeal against his conviction.

"I think this verdict is unjust," one of his lawyers, Chen Shu, told journalists, AFP news agency reports. "This decision is based on evidence that is delayed and verbal testimony. This type of verbal testimony is unreliable."

Three other teenage defendants and a man were also found guilty by the Haidian Court in north-west Beijing.

It said it was giving Li Tianyi a lighter sentence because juvenile offenders should be given a chance to correct and reform their behaviour.

Two of the teenagers who took part in the rape, one aged 15, had their sentences suspended because, the court said, they had confessed, showed remorse and apologised to their victim.

The one man who took part was given a 12-year sentence because he too had regretted his actions and been co-operative.

This was not the first time that Li Tianyi, also known as Li Guanfeng, was involved in an incident that sparked a public outcry. In 2011, he was sentenced to detention for a year over a road rage incident.

He was behind the wheel of a BMW car with no licence plates in Beijing when he confronted a middle-aged couple in another vehicle blocking his way.

He assaulted the couple and shouted at shocked bystanders, telling them not to "dare to call the police".

His father apologised to the couple over the incident.

The case of Li Tianyi inflamed public anger at the children of the political elite, who are often seen as spoilt and above the law, correspondents say.