A man convicted of killing eight people in Hubei Province at the beginning of this year will return to court for a retrial on Friday.

According to the Intermediate People's Court of Suizhou, Xiong Zhenlin formally appealed his death sentence conviction Feb. 12 saying he was drunk when he committed the murders and deserved leniency for his confession.

The retrial was granted and will be overseen by the Hubei Provincial Higher People's Court, said the court Thursday.

Xiong, a junk collector, killed eight people in the Luoyang Township on Jan. 4, 2009. He was arrested in the provincial capital Wuhan a week later.

The victims included five of his junkyard employees, a local resident named Xia Guangxiu, who came to sell waste on the day of the murders, a 43-year-old woman named Zhu Deqing, whom Xiong hoped to marry, and Zhu's 2-year-old grandson, according to court records.

Xiong's first trial was held at the Intermediate People's Court of Suizhou Feb. 9.

The court was told that the murderer, who divorced last September, decided to take revenge on society after his hopes of remarrying again, either to his ex-wife or Zhu, were thwarted.

Local police said Xiong's crimes were also motivated by financial difficulties and his psychological state.

Xiong was convicted of murder and sentenced to death the same day as his trial.

Under Chinese law, appellate rulings are final and can not be overturned. Also, all death sentences must be reviewed by the Supreme People's Court before being carried out.

(Xinhua News Agency February 26, 2009)