Poverty ‘main suspect’ behind death of family of 6 in North-west China
A mysterious case of murder in a small village in northwest China’s Gansu Province, which saw a whole family poisoned, had grabbed the attention of authorities and the public alike.
Yang Gailan, a 28-year-old mother is thought of administrating poison to her four kids aged from three to six, including a pair of five-year-old twins, before taking her own life on August 26.
It is argued that the suspect is herself a victim of poverty, having succumbed to despair as the destitute family led a life of frugality and misery.
The grief-stricken husband, Li Keying, was found dead a few days after the incident. He had returned back to the village a day after the incident took place, and went missing on September 2. His lifeless body was found in nearby woods after a two-day search operation.
Poison was confirmed to be behind his demise, yet it is unknown whether it was a case of suicide.
Investigators are contemplating poverty as a motive that guided Yang to kill her own blood.
The family was financially struggling, and unable to make ends meets. Yang worked the land, and Li was a worker in the city. Of the estimated 7,000 yuan (over 1,000 US dollars) he earned per year, over 3,000 (over 450 dollars) were sent home for his family’s subsistence. Livestock helped the need family earn a few pennies.
However, the family was deprived of government allowance in 2013, when it was evaluated that the average personal income stood at 4,000 yuan (about 600 US dollars) annually, higher than the 2,300 yuan (343 US dollars) limit set by the government.
The State Council Leading Group Office of Poverty Alleviation and Development is now jointly working with local police and Gansu Provincial Department of Civil Affairs to conduct further investigation.
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