Two officials sacked after vendor's death in C. China

CHANGSHA, July 20 (Xinhua) -- Two urban management officials in a central Chinese county were removed from their posts Saturday after a street vendor died in a physical conflict with urban management officers, local authorities said.

Hu Bin, director and Communist Party chief of the urban management administration in Linwu county of Hunan province and Zou Hongwei, the administration's deputy Party chief, are currently under investigation, the county government said in a statement.

The family of the dead watermelon vendor has received 897,000 yuan (146,208 U.S. dollars) in compensation from the local government, local authorities said Saturday.

Deng Zhengjia, a 56-year-old farmer from Liantang Village, Nanqiang Township of Linwu, died following a violent clash with urban management officers on Wednesday morning.

The fight occurred after Deng and his wife tried to sell watermelons at a riverside scenic spot where urban management officers had banned such activities, according to Deng's niece.

She cited a witness as saying that Deng was struck by weights from a set of scales, adding that his wife was also injured and is being treated at a local hospital.

The news has made headlines in the media and online, sparking great concern.

An autopsy was conducted on Thursday afternoon in the presence of his relatives, witnesses and local procuratorate officials, and Deng's body was buried on Thursday evening in accordance with local customs, according to authorities in Chenzhou City.

Police in the city have sent samples from Deng's body to an institution in south China's Guangdong Province, which will further examine the biological materials to determine the cause of death. Local authorities said the results would come out in 15 to 20 days and a final autopsy report would thereafter be released.

The initial investigation described an intracranial injury and soft issue contusions on Deng's body.

Six urban management officers have been detained for alleged intentional injury.

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