Shandong court dismisses appeal of child traffickers

The Shandong Provincial High People's Court dismissed the appeal of two child traffickers and upheld the original ruling against them on Wednesday.

In December 2023, Hu Fuji and Tang Lixia were found guilty of child trafficking by the Liaocheng Intermediate People's Court in Shandong. Hu was given a death sentence with a two-year reprieve, while Tang was sentenced to life in prison.

The two defendants were also deprived of their political rights for life, and all of their personal assets were confiscated.

Soon, the two appealed to the high court.

After hearing the appeal case in August, the high court announced on Wednesday that it rejected the pair's appeal and upheld the original verdict by the intermediate court.

The case has been widely followed by the public because the children the defendants trafficked included the son of Guo Gangtang, whose 24-year search for his missing boy was turned into a movie, Lost and Love, in 2015, with the lead role played by Hong Kong actor Andy Lau.

On Sept 21, 1997, Guo's two-and-a-half-year-old son was abducted near his home. Then, the father began his journey of searching for the child by printing the boy's information on posters, making them into flags and attaching them to his motorcycle.

In 2021, Guo reunited with his son, who had been found in Henan province. Also in that year, Hu and Tang were captured.

In July 2023, the Liaocheng court heard the case, finding that Hu and Tang had trafficked four children, including Guo's son, between 1997 and 1998, and that Hu and others had trafficked another child in 2001.