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Confessed killer receives death penalty

The Taiwan High Court yesterday handed down the death penalty to a man who killed a young woman by stabbing her 176 times with a watermelon knife.

The defendant Wang Hung-wei (王鴻偉), 32, had been sentenced to death five times by the Taiwan High Court, but on each occasion the Supreme Court returned the case to the high court.

The Taiwan High Court yesterday handed down its sixth verdict, again upholding the death penalty in Wang's case.

Yesterday's ruling stated that Wang committed a brutal murder, slashing the victim's face beyond recognition. It said that as Wang had showed no remorse, he should be kept away from society for good.

The ruling said that in 2000 Wang wanted to date 20-year-old Chang Ya-ling (張雅玲), but she was not interested in Wang and had tried to avoid him.

On Sept. 26, 2000, Chang left her home in Tamsui (淡水), Taipei County, to go to work. Wang ran her down with his white Mercedes, knocking her unconscious. He then bundled her into the trunk of his car and drove off. He attacked her and inflicting 176 stab wounds with a watermelon knife before abandoning her body in a vacant parking lot.

Wang was promptly arrested later the same day.

The ruling said Wang showed indifference to the whole matter when being held at the police station as a suspect.

The district court said that the offender had no previous criminal record, had confessed to the crime, had apologized to the victim's family in court and had reached a civil compensation agreement with the family during the trial.

However, judges discovered Wang urged his wealthy family to repudiate the agreement.
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