Some Written Records of Lu Rong Yu 2682

Incident

The “Lu Rong Yu 2682” case was sentenced in the first instance in Weihai, Shandong on July 19, 2013, with five defendants, including Liu Guiduo, sentenced to death, one defendant sentenced to death with a reprieve, and the remaining defendants sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment ranging from 4 to 15 years. On January 21, 2015, the Shandong Provincial Higher People’s Court rejected the appeals filed by Liu Guiduo, Jiang Xiaolong, Huang Jinqbo, and Li Chengquan, upholding the original verdict. On March 23, 2017, the Supreme People’s Court approved the criminal ruling of the death penalty for the five defendants Liu Guiduo, Jiang Xiaolong, Liu Chengjian, Huang Jinqbo, and Li Chengquan.

In December 2010, the deep-sea fishing vessel carried 33 crew members out to sea. On August 12, 2011, when it was towed back to port by a Chinese fishery administration vessel, only 11 crew members remained on board. After nearly two years of investigation and trial, 11 people were found guilty of killing 22 fellow crew members.

According to the court verdict, in May and June 2011, while the 33 crew members led by Captain Li Chengquan were engaged in squid jigging in the southeast Pacific waters off Peru and Chile aboard the “Lu Rong Yu 2682” fishing vessel owned by Xinfa Company, defendants Liu Guiduo and Baode Gejirihu (hereinafter referred to as “Baode”), along with other crew members, were dissatisfied with what they perceived as long hours, high intensity, and low income from squid jigging. They conspired with defendants Jiang Xiaolong, Liu Chengjian, Huang Jinqbo, Wang Peng, Shuangxi, Dai Fushun, Ding Yumin, and others to hijack the vessel and return to China to demand an explanation from the company.

During the hijacking, the mess steward Xia Qiyong was the first casualty, killed by Liu Guiduo and others and thrown into the sea. In July of the same year, while sailing in waters west of Hawaii, crew members Wen Mi and Wen Dou, along with three other crew members, were killed and thrown into the sea, one other crew member was forced to jump overboard, and one went missing. The following day, three more crew members lost their lives.

In July 2011, infighting broke out among the hijackers. Liu Guiduo planned to eliminate Baode and his group. Captain Li Chengquan, Cui Yong, and Duan Zhifang sought to protect themselves by voluntarily requesting to join Liu Guiduo’s side. That night, Liu Guiduo first ordered someone to stab Baode with a knife, forcing him to jump overboard. Subsequently, Shuangxi, Dai Fushun, Bao Baocheng, Shan Guoxi, and Qiu Ronghua were either stabbed or compelled to jump into the sea.

At around 4:00 on July 25, water entered the cabin and the vessel lost power. Wang Yanlong went missing. Fu Yizhong, Guan Xuejun, Ding Yumin, and Song Guochun jumped onto a raft intending to escape but drifted back near the fishing vessel with the current. The four were forced to jump overboard after being harmed by Liu Guiduo, Li Chengquan, and others. The next day, another fishing vessel received their distress signal and reported it to the relevant national authorities. On July 29, the Chinese fishery administration vessel 118 towed the “Lu Rong Yu 2682” back, and subsequently, 11 people were arrested.

After the verdict was announced, the lawyer for defendant Cui Yong claimed the sentence was too severe and would appeal.

Liabilities of Xinfa Company, the Fishing Vessel Owner

In addition to the criminal case, the civil aspects related to this case are also scheduled for a court hearing.

Zhang Wenpu, the legal representative for the deceased crew members Wen Dou and Wen Mi, argued based on the existence of a labor contract relationship and petitioned the employer for payment of labor fees and compensation for personal injury. Zhang Wenpu once stated that based on available materials, there were at least two individuals with criminal records on board, one of whom had previously been sentenced to life imprisonment. Additionally, the company had signed contracts with the crew using a fraudulent seal.

Captain Li Chengquan once claimed that 18 people on board did not have seaman’s certificates, which sparked strong questioning from family members. However, to date, the company and relevant regulatory authorities have not provided a conclusion on this matter.

The Deep-Sea Fishing Vessel’s Real-Life Version of “Battle Royale”

To protect himself, the captain voluntarily joined the hijackers. The two leaders engaged in a bloody infight. Outcome: 11 people charged, 5 sentenced to death, 1 sentenced to death with reprieve.

This was the final outcome of the “Lu Rong Yu 2682” tragedy.

On July 19, the defendant Liu Guiduo stood in the defendant’s dock, with a calm expression.

Just like when the trial opened eight months prior. When the judge asked him what “blood-stained” meant, he retorted, “What do you think it means? Isn’t it obvious?”

The judge asked him to explain. He paused for a moment, then raised his head and said, “The meaning of killing.”

On December 27, 2010, the Lu Rong Yu 2682 set sail with 33 crew members on board for a fishing expedition. On August 12, 2011, only 11 returned to China. 22 were either killed or went missing.

In their initial statements, the 11 who returned gave a consistent account: they were innocent.

The truth gradually emerged during subsequent interrogations.

None of them were innocent. They were all “blood-stained.”

Conspiracy

On December 27, 2010, the Lu Rong Yu 2682 departed from Rongcheng Shidao Port with 33 crew members. Three months later, it would reach the East Pacific waters off Peru and Chile.

According to the contract, they would remain at sea for a full two years. The base salary was 45,000 yuan per year, with additional commission. The primary task was squid jigging, followed by boxing and freezing. It was far from an easy job. Huang Qiang, who had previously worked on deep-sea voyages for squid jigging, said that drifting at sea meant enduring endless loneliness; and during the busiest times, “you couldn’t rest for two days and one night.”

The crew members of Lu Rong Yu 2682 were not aware of these harsh realities.

Captain Li Chengquan was from Dalian. Among this temporarily assembled team, some had failed in their small businesses and hoped to turn their fortunes around through this venture, such as head chef Xia Qiyong. Others, like recent college graduate Ma Yuchao, wanted to take a risk and explore opportunities.

Liu Guiduo, the young man referred to by the prosecutor as responsible for the deaths of 20 people, was from Heilongjiang. He had come to Dalian and found this job at the labor market.

According to the indictment, the motive for hijacking was that they believed “the squid jigging working hours were too long, the intensity too high, and the income too low, causing dissatisfaction.”

In Liu Guiduo’s confession, it was Baode, a crew member from Inner Mongolia, who proposed the hijacking. On June 16, 2011, the fishing vessel had replenished its fuel in Chilean waters, enough to sail back to China.

Around 11:00 PM that night, the hijacking began.

Blood Sacrifice

The ship had three decks. Some were responsible for destroying the vessel’s communication equipment and navigation system. Others guarded the gangway leading from the main deck to the captain’s quarters.

According to the indictment, Liu Guiduo, Baode, and others, armed with knives and iron bars, entered the captain’s quarters, using knives and bars to subdue Li Chengquan, forcing him to turn the vessel around. “Baode stabbed the captain’s leg with a knife, and the captain shouted. I told him to stop shouting, then stabbed him in the leg again,” Liu Guiduo stated in his testimony.

The commotion in the captain’s quarters alerted the unsuspecting head chef Xia Qiyong, who was immediately killed by Jiang Xiaolong.

In his testimony, Jiang Xiaolong said that Xia Qiyong heard the noise and tried to rush into the captain’s quarters. Fearing the situation would get out of control, he gestured with a knife for Xia Qiyong to go back down, and the two began to struggle.

After Xia Qiyong was stabbed in the back, Jiang Xiaolong intended to stab him in the chest. Chief Engineer Wen Dou told him, “Don’t do something stupid.”

When Jiang Xiaolong went to check on Xia Qiyong again, his face had turned pale. Believing Xia Qiyong was already dead, Jiang Xiaolong and another person picked him up to throw him overboard. On the first attempt, they missed the sea, and he landed on the main deck. They found a third person, and the three of them together threw Xia Qiyong into the sea.

His death seemed to ring up a curtain, shocking everyone. Liu Guiduo said he told the hijackers, “Since he’s dead, he’s dead. We’ll talk about it when we get back to China.”

After the captain regained consciousness, he was brought near the satellite navigation system, communication equipment was shut down, and the course was set toward China.

In mid-July 2011, the fishing vessel reached waters west of Hawaii. Liu Guiduo said that both he and Baode had noticed someone planning a rebellion. The evidence of rebellion was that Chief Engineer Wen Dou had attempted to sabotage the vessel’s equipment, and they also discovered that the daily fuel consumption had suddenly increased several times over.

On July 16 and 17, 2011, they took action against those they suspected of planning rebellion.

Suppression

Wen Mi and Wen Dou were brothers, sharing a four-person cabin. According to the indictment, before the action, Liu Guiduo played loud music in the wheelhouse. Wen Dou was called out of the cabin. As soon as he stepped out, Wen Mi was killed and thrown into the sea. After Wen Dou went up to the wheelhouse, he was ambushed at the stairway and stabbed by Baode.

The killing did not stop. Those they believed intended to rebel were called out of their cabins one by one and killed. Even Jiang Xiaolong sometimes felt scared, realizing that people not originally on the hit list were also being killed or forced to jump overboard before his eyes.

After all the “rebels” were eliminated, Liu Guiduo sensed that Baode had turned his sights on him. Because he had grown close to a few individuals, Baode’s gaze toward him changed. Someone also secretly told Liu Guiduo that Baode intended to kill him.

At this point, the captain’s mindset had also shifted. According to the indictment, Li Chengquan, Cui Yong, and Duan Zhifang, seeking to protect themselves, voluntarily requested to join Liu Guiduo’s group.

On July 24, 2011, the fishing vessel entered the Northwest Pacific waters more than 1,000 nautical miles east of Japan, and another round of killing began.

Liu Guiduo said he told Baode to have the captain kill Cui Yong. Baode handed a knife to the captain. The captain stabbed Baode with the knife, and Cui Yong followed up with two more stabs, forcing Baode to jump overboard.

In Jiang Xiaolong’s testimony, after Baode jumped overboard, Liu Guiduo opened the window and called out to Baode in the sea, “Who else is in your group? Tell me, and I’ll pull you up.” After Baode shouted that everyone was out, Liu Guiduo paid him no further attention.

The other five believed to be allied with Baode were either directly forced to jump overboard or stabbed before jumping.

Life and Death

If not for subsequent events, this ship might never have returned to China.

On July 25, 2011, Chief Engineer Wang Yanlong went missing. After his disappearance, the captain discovered that the cabin was taking on water. The source of the water intake was the open main sea valve. Only Wang Yanlong and Chief Engineer Wen Dou knew about the main sea valve. Wen Dou was already dead. Liu Guiduo was certain it was Wang Yanlong’s doing.

The ship was at risk of sinking. For the first time, the captain contacted a company vessel operating in Korean waters to send a distress signal. Four individuals who had not yet killed anyone secretly put on life jackets, boarded a life raft, and left the ship. However, the current flowed upstream, carrying them back near the fishing vessel.

According to the indictment, Captain Li Chengquan, Liu Guiduo, and others threw squid sinkers at the raft. All four were forced to jump overboard.

Song Guochun was eventually pulled back onto the ship.

Li Chengquan suggested that there were still two people on board who had not “bloodied their hands.” Duan Zhifang and Xiang Lishan were required to do so. They removed Song Guochun’s life jacket, bound his hands and feet, and sank him to the bottom of the sea using a sinker. Xiang Lishan repeatedly stated in court that if he hadn’t killed Song Guochun, he himself would have died.

Song Guochun’s death finally brought the killing to an end.

On July 29, 2011, the Chinese fishery administration vessel No. 118 arrived. Prior to this, the 11 had established a pact of mutual defense: Baode and his group, who had been eliminated in the internal conflict, were the bad guys; Xia Qiyong, the first to be killed, had participated in the hijacking; the remaining individuals had left on a life raft when the ship was about to sink.

Verdict

1. Defendants Liu Guiduo, Jiang Xiaolong, Liu Chengjian, and Huang Jinqbo: Guilty of intentional homicide, sentenced to death and deprived of political rights for life; Guilty of hijacking a vessel, sentenced to life imprisonment and deprived of political rights for life. Combined sentence: death and deprived of political rights for life.

2. Defendant Li Chengquan: Guilty of intentional homicide, sentenced to death and deprived of political rights for life.

3. Defendant Wang Peng: Guilty of intentional homicide, sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve and deprived of political rights for life; Guilty of hijacking a vessel, sentenced to 12 years imprisonment. Combined sentence: death with a two-year reprieve and deprived of political rights for life.

4. Defendant Feng Xingyan: Guilty of intentional homicide, sentenced to life imprisonment and deprived of political rights for life.

5. Defendants Mei Linsheng and Cui Yong: Guilty of intentional homicide, sentenced to 15 years imprisonment and deprived of political rights for 3 years.

6. Defendant Xiang Lishan: Guilty of intentional homicide, sentenced to 4 years imprisonment; Guilty of theft, sentenced to 1 year and 6 months imprisonment with a fine of 10,000 yuan. Combined sentence: 5 years imprisonment with a fine of 10,000 yuan.

7. Defendant Duan Zhifang: Guilty of intentional homicide, sentenced to 4 years imprisonment.