Man sentenced to death for killing ex-wife during live video

On Thursday, a Chinese man was given the death penalty for setting his ex-wife on fire as she was live streaming to her digital followers, concluding a murder case that gained national attention.

The victim, a 30-year-old farmer and Vlogger Lhamo lived in south eastern Sichuan province. Last September, while she was streaming a live video of herself, a man stepped in, poured gasoline on her, and put her on fire. Two weeks later, she passed away in hospital.

Tang Lu, her ex-husband, was arrested shortly after the incident. According to state-run broadcaster CCTV, he was found guilty of murder and was sentenced to death, and and also required to pay compensation.

According to CCTV, the court judged his crime "very harsh" and "deserves severe punishment."

Tang had a history of physical abuse toward Lhamo, allegedly assaulting her numerous times before their divorce in June 2020. In the months that followed, he regularly approached her and wanted to remarry, but she refused, culminating to the murder.
The case received widespread coverage in national and international media, drawing attention to the heinous nature of Lhamo's death while also increasing awareness of China's issues with women violence.
China approved a contentious rule mandating couples who want to divorce to go through a month-long "cooling off" period just months before her death, sparking concerns that it might jeopardize victims of abuse and hinder them from leaving a relationship that could be improved.