Sixteen members of a Beijing criminal gang were jailed on Friday.

 

Gang boss Lei Nagang, received a 17-year sentence for willful and malicious injury, extortion, stirring up fights and causing trouble, when he appeared before the city's No 2 Intermediate People's Court.

 

His gang had been fighting for control of Huairou District since 2001, court sources said.

 

Yin Chunwei, 26, another prime figure in the gang, was jailed for 15 years.

 

The other 14 gang members were sentenced to between 1 and 11 years jail.

 

Aged from 21 to 41, the gang members were farmers and unemployed residents from Beijing's Huairou District and Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, court sources said.

 

Twelve of them, including Lei and Yin, were ordered to pay compensation of 89,000 yuan (US$11,000) for the damage they caused.

 

The court heard how, in 2002, Lei quarreled with a man surnamed Du at a restaurant in Huairou. After the argument Lei led a 10-man gang armed with swords and axes in a vicious attack on Du.

 

Between 2001 to 2005, in a bid to monopolize the district's movie extra business, Lei, Yin and the gang attacked 10 people and destroyed three cars.

 

The gang was also involved in other malicious injuries, extortion and stirring up fights.

 

Lei was arrested in March last year. His gang was rounded up shortly afterwards.

 

(China Daily May 27, 2006)