{"id":13836,"date":"2012-08-12T01:08:56","date_gmt":"2012-08-12T01:08:56","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2012-08-12T01:08:56","modified_gmt":"2012-08-12T01:08:56","slug":"China-awaits-verdict-in-Gu-Kailai-murder-trial","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/asiancemagazine.com\/?p=13836","title":{"rendered":"China awaits verdict in Gu Kailai murder trial"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>China appears to be preparing the public for sparing from execution the wife of politician Bo Xilai who is accused of murdering a British man, a legal expert said, as a verdict is awaited in the politically-charged case.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Bo&#8217;s wife Gu Kailai and an accomplice were tried on Thursday for poisoning Neil Heywood<\/strong>, allegedly after her son fell out with the businessman in a dispute over a land project.<\/p>\n<p>In a lengthy and unusual report released through China&#8217;s official Xinhua news agency on Friday, <strong>Gu admitted guilt and blamed her actions on a mental breakdown over fears Heywood had threatened her son.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>The court heard Heywood had demanded 13 million pounds (US$20 million), and sent Bo Guagua an email threatening &#8220;you will be destroyed&#8221;, <\/strong>a source who attended the hearing, who requested anonymity.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The verdict is expected to be delivered at a later date, possibly days or weeks away<\/strong>, and while murder carries the death penalty in China, experts say Gu is likely to be spared execution and will instead face a long jail term.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Heywood&#8217;s murder and allegations of a cover-up sparked the biggest political scandal in China for years and led to the downfall of Bo,<\/strong> who had been tipped to become one of the ruling Communist Party&#8217;s top leaders.<\/p>\n<p>It also exposed deep divisions among China&#8217;s rulers ahead of a sensitive 10-yearly handover of power later this year, and observers say the party is keen to swiftly draw a line under the controversy.<\/p>\n<p><em>Source AP<\/em><br \/>\n<!--break--><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>China appears to be preparing the public for sparing from execution the wife of politician Bo Xilai who is 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