Nine Chinese government prosecutors who tortured a Hong Kong-based businessman to death were jailed on Tuesday, marking a rare instance of China punishing its much-feared interrogators.
Lau Hei-wing, the owner of a Hong Kong hotel and husband of prominent CCTV anchor Liu Fangfei, died in March 2017 after 80 hours of sleep deprivation and torture, according to the indictment of the nine men.
The case has shone a spotlight on the brutal methods used by Chinese police in interrogations — techniques that have come under greater scrutiny following a political purge that has decimated the top ranks of the government’s bureaucracy. Legal changes have rolled back even minimal protections for Chinese citizens who have been detained.