Lao Rongzhi: Chinese Serial Killer Who Murdered 7 People Executed After 20 Years

A Chinese woman, famous for killing seven people over 20 years ago was executed on December 18 morning, as per Supreme Court orders. Lao Rongzhi was on the run for two decades, getting away with the brutal murders, extortion, and robberies she committed between 1996 and 1999. She was arrested by police in Xiamen, Fujian Province, on November 28, 2019. The trial came to an end on Monday when the Jiangxi High People's Court carried out the 49-year-old's execution in Nanchang city.

The trial went on for four years, and Rongzhi claimed that she was only responsible for robbery and extortion while her ex-boyfriend was the murderer, according to a South China Morning Post report. The report added that Rongzhi's ex-boyfriend was executed in 1999.

Partners In Crime

Rongzhi and her ex-boyfriend, Fa Ziying, were famous for their serial killings and other crimes in China. According to Chinese media reports, Rongzhi was responsible for attracting the victims, while Ziying killed them. During her trial, the court said that the duo conspired to kidnap, rob, and murder seven people in four different cities including Nanchang, Wenzhou, Changzhou, and Hefei. In one case, they murdered a couple and their three-year-old child before robbing their home.

Ziying was apprehended in 1999 while collecting a ransom at the home of the last victim and executed later that year. Rongzhi then fled Hefei in 1999 and used false identities, working odd jobs until her arrest in 2019.

Arrest And Trial

Rongzhi was arrested at a shopping centre in Xiamen, where she was selling watches. She was charged with the crimes of intentional homicide, robbery, and kidnapping in August 2020.  Her political rights were evoked and all her assets were seized.

Rongzhi pleaded not guilty, saying she was not involved in the murders. She also tearfully apologized to the victims' families and offered compensation. “I believe the law will not treat a good person unjustly, neither will it let off a bad person,” she told the court on December 14, according to the Jiangxi Higher People‘s Court. However, the court rejected her claim that she had only a minor role in the crimes and held their order to execute her.