Two police officers were sentenced on Friday to jail terms for dereliction of duty and abusing detention center inmates that led to the death of an inmate in southwest China.

The sentences were handed down after a first hearing at the People's Court of Songming County, in Kunming, capital of Yunnan Province.

A court official said Li Dongming, a former police officer at Jinning County Detention Center, would be jailed for one year and six months with a two-year reprieve in recognition of his confession and apparent remorse.

Su Shaolu, who had worked at the same detention center, was sentenced to one year in jail for abuse of inmates.

The court said he was shown leniency because he showed remorse for his crime and successfully stopped a suicide attempt by another inmate during his detention.

Both defendants said they would not appeal.

The court heard earlier that Li Dongming, as a discipline officer for the detention center's No. 9 Cell Block, failed to stop bullying that led to the death of 24-year-old Li Qiaomin on February 8.

The two Lis were not related.

Li Qiaomin had been detained for felling trees without authorization on January 29.

During his detention, Li Qiaomin was repeatedly beaten by other inmates in the same cell. He was severely injured and died despite medics' attempts to save him.

Li's death caused a public controversy as he was originally said to have died during a "hide-and-seek" game.

Su Shaolu was accused of violating a regulation banning corporal punishment and of abusing more than 20 inmates who had broken detention center rules.

Jinning and Songming are counties administered by Kunming City.

(Xinhua News Agency August 14, 2009)