Handcuffs Photo: CFP

 
Wu Xieyu, 30, a former Peking University student who killed his mother, was executed on Wednesday, the Intermediate People's Court in Fuzhou, East China’s Fujian Province announced. 

China’s Supreme People's Court recently made a ruling on Wu’s case. Wu was charged with intentional homicide, fraud, and buying and selling of fake ID cards. The court approved the death penalty for Wu in accordance with the law. 

Wu was sentenced to death by the Fuzhou intermediate people's court in August 2021, along with a fine of 103,000 yuan ($14,342). The Fujian High People's Court upheld the death sentence in May 2023.

Wu hired a defense lawyer, and the Supreme People's Court carefully considered and reviewed the case for the defense, said the Intermediate People's Court in Fuzhou. 

Before the execution, the court informed Wu that he could apply to meet with his relatives, but Wu did not make any such request. 

Wu committed a brutal murder that seriously violated ethical principles, said the court.  

Wu also engaged in fraud and the buying and selling of ID documents, and showed no repentance, according to the court. 

Wu had a deep sense of pessimism and disgust toward life, to the extent that he had previously contemplated ending his own life. However, following the passing of his father, he became convinced that his mother, Xie, had also lost all purpose in life, said the court. 

When Xie returned home to change shoes, Wu struck her over the head with a dumbbell, leading to her death. Wu concealed what he had done from family and friends, saying that Xie had accompanied him to study abroad. He also deceived family and friends into giving him 1.44 million yuan, which he then squandered, according to the court. Wu also purchased more than 10 ID cards to conceal his identity.