HK to extradite man in teen murders

Updated: 2016-02-12 23:11

By LIA ZHU in San Francisco and AGENCIES(China Daily USA)

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A Chinese man agreed in a Hong Kong court Thursday to be sent back to the US, where he is wanted by authorities in connection with the slayings of his teenage nephews.

Shi Deyun signed a document in a magistrates’ court giving consent for his extradition.

US police last month found the boys, who were 15- and 16-years-old, in their Arcadia, California, home with head trauma.

Investigators believe Shi killed them and then tried to flee to China. They said he assaulted his wife, who is the sister of the dead teens’ father, the day before, after learning she wanted a divorce.

Hong Kong police arrested Shi, 44, on Jan 24, after he arrived in the semiautonomous southern Chinese city on a flight from Los Angeles.

Shi, looking at the floor, nodded when asked by Magistrate Jason Wan if he had read and understood the agreement to surrender him to the United States.

A date for Shi’s return has not been set because it still needs signed authorization from Hong Kong’s top leader, Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying.

Shi is accused of killing two of his nephews in their home in Arcadia, California, on Jan 22 before boarding a Cathay Pacific flight to Hong Kong the next day.

He was arrested by Hong Kong police at the airport.

Shi made his first appearance at a Hong Kong court on Jan 26, where he denied the allegations against him and said he wanted to “go back (to the US) as soon as possible”, according to the South China Morning Post.

He also requested to be set free on bail, which was denied.

Students and teachers at Arcadia High School California paid respects to William and Anthony Lin at a candlelight vigil held on Jan 25 at the school.

“How shameless he (Shi) is to request bail after slaying two boys!” said an Internet user named “Morning Sunlight” in a comment to an article posted Tuesday at a US-based Chinese news website.

Many members of the Chinese community agreed that Shi should be brought to justice on the Chinese mainland.

“As the old saying goes: A murderer must pay with his life; a debtor must pay his debt. It’s reasonable enough,” said a Chinese mother living in the Bay Area, who asked to be identified only by her last name Wang. “Since he is a Chinese national, he should stand trial in China, where the court system moves faster than in the US.”

Among those demanding a death sentence is the father of the slain brothers. He told World Journal that it was a premeditated murder and he hoped Shi would be sentenced to death, whether in China or in the US.

He said he saw Shi’s car, without a license plate, parked near their home in the small hours of Jan 22 and that Shi had transferred all his money to China before he committed the crime.

An angry Shi allegedly attacked his wife in their home on Jan 21 and killed the brothers in their Arcadia home the next day.

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