Three community wardens in east China's Anhui Province were sentenced to a nine-month jail term for intimidating a retired teacher, who shortly after committed suicide.

They were also fined 90,000 yuan (about 12,000 U.S. dollars) by Suixi County People's Court for abusing their authority, Anhui Business News reported on Thursday.

The retired primary teacher surnamed Liang from Huaibei, a city in north Anhui, had a quarrel over service charges with the employees of a barbershop and their boss after getting a massage there in September 2005, the newspaper said.

The boss called the community wardens at the nearby Suihe police station, who came and took Liang away with a police car they borrowed from the police station.

Without reporting to police or leaving any records of the case, the wardens intimidated Liang into admitting he had taken a prostitute, and fined him 5,000 yuan (about 667 U.S. dollars).

After returning home, Liang committed suicide by poisoning himself with pesticide. He left a will, which gives the details of how the community wardens intimidated and forced him into admitting things he never did.

However, the wardens were only sentenced to six-months' imprisonment with slightly more than 30,000 yuan (about 4000 U.S. dollars) of fine by Suixi County People's Court in the first trial.

Liang's family appealed to the Huaibei City People's Intermediate Court, which sent the case back to the county court for a second trial.

"We are still not satisfied with the result. The community wardens have not even apologized to my family", said Liang's son, who has been struggling with the case for two years.

(Xinhua News Agency January 25, 2008)