Seven arrested following fatal demolition in central China

Seven people have been arrested after a body was found last month in the debris of a demolished home in central China's Hunan Province, prosecutors said Tuesday.

Li Jun, former Communist Party of China (CPC) Guanshaling community head in the district of Yuelu in the provincial capital Changsha City, was among those arrested for abuse of power or dereliction of duty on July 28 and 29, according to a statement issued by Changsha People's Procuratorate.

The other suspects include four lower-level community officials or employees, the current Party chief, and the head of Chazishan village, according to the statement.

On July 7, the body of a woman was found in demolition debris in Chazishan. It is alleged that there had been a dispute between the home owners and the demolition crew.

Investigators confirmed that the woman had been crushed to death. According to Yang Quan, who claims to be the son of the deceased, his mother, Gong Xuehui, 60, had not been seen since demolition on June 16. Her body was found weeks later after her son hired an excavator to search through the debris.

Yang alleges that on June 16 hundreds of people barged into his home and tried to remove the family, including Gong, from the premises.

He told Beijing News that they were locked in a car until their home had been leveled.

The report said the family failed to reach an agreement on compensation with the authority managing the demolition. Endi