The Kaohsiung branch of the High Court has upheld a death sentence against a man who was convicted of the rape and murder of a Malaysian student of Chang Jung Christian University in Tainan in October 2020.
Chiu Ming-hung (邱明弘), chief judge of the hearing, told reporters that the court had upheld Liang Yu-chih’s (梁育誌) sentence due to his lack of remorse or empathy for his 24-year-old victim, surnamed Chung (鍾), as well as his high risk of recidivism.
The ruling can be appealed.
Photo: Wu Chun-feng, Taipei Times
Liang, who confessed to the murder following his arrest, was sentenced to death by a district court on March 18 last year.
Prosecutors said Liang abducted Chung on Oct. 28, 2020, while she was walking alone along a railway overpass near her school at about 8pm.
Liang confessed to raping and strangling the Malaysian student with rope before dumping her body in the mountains of Kaohsiung’s Alian District (阿蓮), they said.
After receiving a missing persons report from Chung’s university, police used security camera footage to identify Liang as a suspect and arrested him in Kaohsiung on Oct. 29, 2020.
Liang allegedly attempted to rape another person prior to murdering Chung, police said.
The murder drew significant media attention in Malaysia, given that Chung was a member of a prominent local family in the state of Sarawak.
Before the lower court sentenced Liang to death, Chung’s parents had asked for “life for life” as an appropriate administration of justice.
Chung’s mother said on social media that justice had been served by yesterday’s ruling.
Malaysian media reported that Chung studied at Malaysia’s Sibu Methodist Pilley Institute from 2014 to 2017 for a three-year diploma before transferring to Chang Jung Christian University for a three-year business management degree.
The schools have a partnership in which students can complete their studies on each other’s campuses.
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