A man initially handed a suspended death sentence for a series of violent retaliatory crimes now faces capital punishment following a retrial by a high court in Yunnan province.

The Yunnan High People's Court sentenced Tian Yongming to death on Tuesday for intentional homicide, ruling that a previous suspended death sentence was inappropriate and required correction due to the severity of the offenses. The retrial detailed a violent criminal history dating back to September 1996 when Tian was initially sentenced to nine years in prison for the rape and attempted murder of his sister-in-law.

Upon his release from prison on July 15, 2002, Tian hatched a plan to seek out his victim to retaliate. On the evening of Nov 13, 2002,Tian broke into the woman's home armed with a knife.

When she managed to escape from the house, a fellow villager named Liu Mingfu attempted to intervene. Tian stabbed Liu multiple times and killed him. Tian then caught his sister-in-law and stabbed her several times before bystanders stopped the attack.

Tian managed to evade authorities for nearly two decades before he was arrested on Feb 24, 2022, in Changsha, Hunan province. Police traced him to a rental apartment using video surveillance and intelligence analysis.

The Yuxi Intermediate People's Court sentenced Tian to death with a two-year reprieve in November 2022. After Tian appealed that decision, the high court upheld the suspended sentence on Oct 26, 2025, adhering to the legal principle of "no increase in sentence upon appeal". However, two days later, the high court announced a retrial, citing legal misapplications and an inappropriate original sentence.

On Tuesday, the high court found that Tian's actions demonstrated a blatant disregard for national laws and social ethics. The court noted that despite his prior imprisonment, Tian showed no remorse and committed further violence, resulting in one death and one injury. The court described his malicious intent as profound and the circumstances as particularly heinous, posing a significant threat to society.

The death sentence has been submitted to the Supreme People's Court, China's top court, for final review. Under Chinese law, all death penalties must be ratified by the top court before an execution can be carried out.

Xu Hao, a Beijing-based lawyer, noted that Tian retains the right to submit a final appeal and defense opinion to the high court during this mandatory review period.