In July of this year in Zhongmu, Henan Province, a tragic “family annihilation case” occurred. Mr. Liang’s wife, 8-and-a-half-year-old son, and 7-year-old daughter were murdered, and the suspect turned out to be a childhood friend of Mr. Liang.
The case is scheduled to be heard in Zhongmu County Court on December 23. According to reports from Jiemu News and others, on December 21, Mr. Liang, a family member of the victims, expressed that the day of the trial would have been his deceased wife’s 30th birthday. His only demand is for the perpetrator to be sentenced to death and executed immediately.
Mr. Liang explained that he and his wife were both from Shangcai County, Zhumadian City, Henan Province. In early 2019, the family moved to Zhongmu County, Zhengzhou for scrap recycling business. In May of this year, to improve their financial situation, he went to work in Hubei alone, while his wife stayed at home to take care of their two children.
On the evening of July 25, he chatted with his wife until late at night. The next day, he messaged his wife but did not receive any replies. He contacted their childhood friend, Cui, to check on them, but Cui made excuses. Mr. Liang then asked his mother and in-laws to go to Zhongmu, only to discover his wife and children dead at home.
Mr. Liang learned from his mother that the scene was cleaned up neatly, the air conditioning was set to 16℃, and his wife and daughter’s faces were unrecognizable. Only half of his son’s face could still be identified.
On July 28, Mr. Liang was informed by the police that the suspect was their childhood friend, Cui. “There were wounds on his neck and back, caused by my wife trying to defend herself. His DNA was found under her fingernails,” Mr. Liang said. It was revealed that Cui had made a copy of their house keys, entered for theft, took some gold jewelry and bank cards which were later recovered. However, the details are still under investigation.
The court summons indicates that Cui is charged with robbery.
“I still can’t understand why he would do this up to now,” Mr. Liang said. They grew up together and even drifted to the north together for five years. In January of this year, Cui and his son came to Zhongmu for recycling business and stayed at a station Mr. Liang previously owned, where he mentioned liking Mr. Liang’s children and even talked about a future marriage between his son and Mr. Liang’s daughter.
After the incident, Mr. Liang slept no more than 4 hours a day, lost 26 pounds, and suffered from palpitations and trembling all over his body.
Regarding the case, Cui’s father stated that their families had a good relationship and he could not understand why Cui would do such a thing. He also mentioned not being aware of any substantial debts Cui might have had.