Wang Qiang (serial killer)

Wang Qiang (16 January 1975 – 17 November 2005) was a Chinese serial killer, rapist and robber from Liaoning, China, and one of the most prolific murderers in Chinese history.

Early life
Wang was born in 1975 and grew up in the small village of Kaiyuan, Liaoning. His father was physically and emotionally abusive towards his family, addicted to drinking and gambling, and denied Wang the chance to enter school. Due to the abuse, Wang eventually left home and lived on the streets.

In 1990 at the Shenyang Railway Station Square, Wang was surrounded and beaten to near-death by a group of fellow beggars. Days after he was released from the police station, Wang was taken in by an older man who gave him a meal and told him he would never get by from begging, and "only by stealing would he get ahead." Wang began pickpocketing, with most of the stolen money going to the man who housed him. In June 1991, Wang stole a wallet and was sent to a labor camp for two years.

Murders and rapes
Wang committed his first confirmed murder on 22 January 1995. Official records show Wang was convicted of 45 murders, 10 rapes and 34 robberies, and that most of his crimes were committed in public parks. Some young girls were raped post-mortem. During his attacks, which he was often accompanied in by other violent criminals, he would attack men suddenly, and rob and rape his female victims.

After his arrest, Wang cooperated with investigators and led them to the scenes of his crimes. He recalled one instance in Xutai Village on 6 July 2000, when he saw a family of three sleeping and smashed their heads with a pickaxe and raped the dead young girl. Wang claimed to have begun killing in 1992, but this was not verified.

Arrest, trial and execution
Wang was implicated by his accomplices who were imprisoned and was arrested on 14 July 2003. His interrogation lasted a year and a half, with Wang gradually confessing.

Wang was sentenced to death for the murders on 23 March 2005 and was executed by firing squad on 17 November 2005.