Suspect in Mekong River murders trial reverses plea to guilty
Beijing - Alleged Golden Triangle drug lord Nor Kham reversed his plea to guilty of murdering 13 Chinese sailors on the Mekong River in October after five co-defendants testified againsthim, state media reported early Saturday.
The trial in the south-western city of Kunming, capital of Yunnan province, ended Friday with the 43-year-old Burmese citizen begging for leniency and expressing penitence to the victims and their families in court, the official Xinhua news agency reported.
Nor Kham on Thursday denied allegations of drug trafficking, kidnapping and hijacking ships, despite reportedly confessing his involvement to police earlier.
"The (crime) was carried out by the Thais," he was quoted as saying by the semi-official China News Service on Friday, "I knew about it through television."
But Kham's five co-defendants all said Nor Kham masterminded the attack, Xinhua said.
Sentencing was to take place "following a review of the case by a collegiate bench," Xinhua said.
The 13 sailors were confirmed dead after two China-registered cargo boats were attacked on October 5 near the Thai-Myanmar border.//DPA
