This morning, the Guiyang Intermediate People’s Court reaffirmed that Yu Huaying’s crimes were particularly severe and posed significant societal harm. The court sentenced Yu Huaying to death for the crime of child trafficking, stripping her of political rights for life, and ordering the confiscation of all her personal property. Yu Huaying expressed her intention to appeal the verdict in court.
The recent retrial ensured fairness and justice in judicial procedures, revealing previously overlooked crimes committed by Yu Huaying. It was discovered that the number of victims trafficked by her had increased by six, involving four additional cases. During the retrial, more details of the cases emerged, and our legal journalist conducted an exclusive interview with the individuals involved in the newly added charges.
The increase in victims: Who are they?
Born in 1963, Yu Huaying married a man named Wang Jiawen in Chongqing when she was 21 and had a daughter. In 1990, Wang Jiawen was sentenced for theft, prompting Yu to seek work elsewhere, where she met Gong Xianliang. Among the four newly added cases, two were perpetrated together with Gong Xianliang, while the other two involved criminal activities with her husband, Wang Jiawen.
**First Additional Case in Yu Huaying’s Retrial: Trafficking of Chen Jianghua and Chen Jianghai**
In a nearby park, Yu Huaying and Gong Xianliang abducted two brothers, Chen Jianghua and Chen Jianghai. According to the public prosecutor’s accusations: on February 28, 1993, they lured the brothers under the pretense of taking them to an arcade in Xi’jiao Park, Guizhou. Realizing that Jianghua was too old to sell, they left him in a gaming venue in Guiyang while trafficking Jianghai to a household in Handan, Hebei, for 3,500 to 4,500 yuan.
Since Yu Huaying chose to abandon her attempt to sell Chen Jianghua, the prosecutor recommended considering it a case of “cessation of child trafficking.” For the victims, particularly Chen Jianghai, every detail of this harrowing event is etched in memory.
Chen Jianghai expressed his deep hatred for human traffickers, saying, “They changed the course of my life, and the longing for home has been an indescribable pain.”
Recalling the incident, the less-than-five-year-old Chen Jianghai was accompanied by his nine-year-old brother when they went to Guizhou with their parents, who were busy with business. After being lured away by strange people with a pack of hawthorn candy, he only realized they were heading in the wrong direction when it was time to board a train.
Once in Handan, his memories became hazy over time, though the yearning for home remained.
**Reporter:** “Did you know you were sold to Handan, Hebei?”
**Chen Jianghai:** “Of course I did. I missed my parents and my brother. Without memories, there is no pain, but with memories comes suffering. I’d forgotten what my mother looked like. I didn’t remember where my home was, what city it was, or my parents’ names. It felt like fishing for a needle in the ocean. The suffering never left, and I grew to despise myself for not remembering anything.”
Chen Jianghai faced unfamiliar surroundings and attempted to sneak away multiple times to find his family.
“I believed my home was west of where the sun set, so I ran that way countless times as a child,” he shared.
Despite his efforts to find his way back, Chen Jianghai struggled with the pain of separation. In 2013, after getting married and having a child, the desire to find his biological family grew stronger.
With the help of family, he began blood sampling, DNA matching, and joined search groups, but faced a decade of silence. Finally, in November 2023, a volunteer shared good news: a match had been found. In March of this year, Chen Jianghai embarked on a journey to reunite with his family in Guizhou.
On the day of the reunion, he recognized his mother instantly upon seeing her limping towards him. The two embraced, tears streaming down their faces as they realized they had found each other again.
Upon finding his family, Chen Jianghai learned that his brother Chen Jianghua had made it back home after being rescued by kind strangers when he left the arcade.
Following Chen Jianghai’s abduction, his family abandoned their business. His mother fell ill, suffering severe health issues, but they never stopped searching for him. The retrial of Yu Huaying provided a sense of closure and comfort for the family.
**Chen Jianghai:** “Capturing Yu Huaying is the best way to account for the victims and their families. If she goes unpunished, many questions will remain unanswered.”
**Another Abduction a Year Later: Targeting Another Set of Brothers**
A year after abducting Chen Jianghai, Yu Huaying returned to Guizhou to commit another crime, this time targeting two brothers who were also part of the newly added victims.
**Second Additional Case in Yu Huaying’s Retrial: Trafficking of Wang Yanlong and Wang Nengneng**
The court heard that on October 7, 1994, Yu Huaying, in collaboration with Gong Xianliang, took advantage of the unattended Wang brothers, luring them with promises of food. After taking them to Guiyang by car and then by train, they trafficked the brothers to Handan, Hebei.
Wang Yanlong and Wang Nengneng’s mother, Zhang Rongxian, was present at the trial. Upon hearing that her children had been sold to a family for prices of 3,500 and 4,000 yuan, she conveyed her heartbreak: “Yu Huaying separated me from my flesh and blood for 30 years. I truly don’t know how I survived.”
Zhang Rongxian, now 55, shared that she and her husband moved to Anshun to work at a coal yard after leaving their hometown in 1990. Though they weren’t wealthy, their family of five was happy—until tragedy struck on one fateful day.
On October 7, 1994, her husband left for work, while Zhang stayed home doing chores. After breakfast, the three children went out to play, but only her three-year-old returned half an hour later. The older two were missing. When asked, her youngest son ambiguously mentioned that someone had taken his brothers.
Zhang recalled, “Before they were kidnapped, my youngest son mentioned someone giving his brothers toys.” That person was Yu Huaying, who had just moved in next door.
After searching for them without success and enduring the heartbreak of her husband’s mental decline post-trauma, Zhang embarked on an unyielding quest to find her sons.
The pain was so profound that her husband attempted suicide twice; though he survived, he fell into a deep depression that left him bedridden. Meanwhile, Zhang traveled far and wide with flyers, hoping to locate her children.
“Every night in my dreams, I searched for them, only to wake up realizing they had not grown up with me. I never got to see them as adults,” she mourned.
After three decades, in August 2023, a breakthrough arrived when a DNA test linked her to a man who claimed he was abducted to Handan, Hebei as a child—a man who remembered having a younger brother.
“Once I found my eldest son, many volunteers encouraged me to reach out to the police, believing my youngest son might also be in Handan,” Zhang said.
Eventually, through diligent matching, she found her youngest son, Wang Nengneng, the day after Mother’s Day. The first message she received from him included a heartfelt wish: “Happy Mother’s Day.”
Though her eldest son has yet to recognize her, Zhang remains hopeful that, one day, they can speak face-to-face and share stories of their 30-year separation.
**During Her Husband’s Escape: Multiple Instances of Child Trafficking**
Two of the newly added cases are directly connected to Yu Huaying’s husband, Wang Jiawen. In 1990, he was imprisoned for theft before escaping custody in 1992. During his time on the run, he reconnected with Yu Huaying, and together, they executed several child trafficking schemes. After his capture in September 2023, he is currently under separate legal proceedings.
**Third Additional Case in Yu Huaying’s Retrial: Trafficking of Li Cong**
During the retrial, Qiung Suhua learned more details about the abduction of her son, Li Cong. On February 21, 2002, Wang Jiawen abducted Li Cong from his home in Dali, Yunnan. He later handed Li Cong over to Yu Huaying, who took him to Handan for sale.
**Fourth Additional Case in Yu Huaying’s Retrial: Trafficking of Chen Caiyong**
The public prosecutor alleged that on December 8, 2003, Wang Jiawen abducted Chen Caiyong near his home in Lijiang, Yunnan, and later delivered him to Yu Huaying. They trafficked Chen Caiyong to Handan for 4,000 to 5,000 yuan.
Thus far, 17 children from 12 families have been confirmed as victims in Yu Huaying’s case, each carrying the deep scars of separation from their loved ones.
The retrial of Yu Huaying reflects a commitment to judicial fairness and serves as a form of compensation and solace for the victims’ families.
**Qiung Suhua:** “For the parents of these 17 children, each of whom has been deeply wounded by the actions of Wang Jiawen and Yu Huaying, it is crucial to witness both of them face legal consequences. Only then will the burdens in our hearts begin to lift.”
