China sentences Canadian to death

BEIJING: A Chinese court sentenced a second Canadian man to death for drug trafficking on Tuesday, eliciting a rebuke from Canada’s foreign minister, amid diplomatic tensions between Ottawa and Beijing.

The court in southern Guangdong province said the Canadian, Fan Wei, and 10 others -- including an American and four Mexicans -- had been part of an international narcotics syndicate working out of Taishan city between July and November 2012.

The group produced and sold 63.38 kilos of methamphetamine and 366 grammes of dimethylamylamine, a drug used for attention deficit-hyperactive disorder, weight loss and improving athletic performance, according to the Jiangmen Intermediate People’s Court.

Fan and a Chinese man who played a key role in operations were sentenced to death, the court said in a statement. "The number of drugs sold and manufactured was extremely large and the crimes were extremely serious," the statement said.

The other foreigners were given suspended death sentences which would be reduced to life imprisonment after two years while the rest of the men faced prison terms. They have 10 days to appeal the sentence.

"Canada stands firmly opposed to the use of the death penalty, everywhere around the world," she told reporters. "We think that this is a cruel and inhumane punishment, which should not be used in any country.