Three people were sentenced to death for murder and other crimes committed in and after the July 5 riot in Urumqi, capital of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, on Friday.

The defendants were Heyrinisa Sawut, Ruzikhari Niyaz and Li Longfei.

Another one was sentenced to life imprisonment by the Intermediate People's Court of Urumqi, while three others were given jail terms.

Heyrinisa Sawut was convicted of assaulting innocent people Wang Jun, Yang Junyan and He Jinwen in front of a local hospital with rod and rock, leaving He in a vegetative condition. Heyrinisa Sawut was also convicted of smashing a car and killing its owner Yu Hai with rocks.

Ruzikhari Niyaz was convicted of killing innocent people Yu Xinping and An Zhigang with pick and rock.

Li Longfei and another man Pei Guofeng were convicted of killing innocent people Memet Tohti, Ahmat Yasin and a man in camouflage uniform with club on July 7, two days after the riot. The third victim was not yet identified. Pei surrendered himself to police and hence had his penalty reduced to life imprisonment.

Three others, convicted of arson and other crimes, were given jail terms of 10 to 18 years.

The trials were heard in open sessions with presence of relatives of the defendants and the victims.

On Thursday five people were sentenced to death by the court, two others were sentenced to life imprisonment while another six were given jail terms.

(Xinhua News Agency December 5, 2009)