TWO men stood trial Tuesday at the Shenzhen Intermediate People’s Court on charges of using homemade bombs to extort money from a local chain of furnishings stores.

The suspects, Wu Shaokai and Cai Wudao from Guangdong’s Shanwei City, have caused more than 400,000 yuan (US$52,632) in economic losses to Shenzhen HoBa Homa Chain Enterprise Co. Ltd., prosecutors said.

Wu and Cai conspired to make bombs to extort money from HoBa Homa in August 2006. In October, Cai bought dynamite, ammonium nitrate and fuses from a coal mine using money given to him by Wu and made a bomb at Wu’s home. At about 8 p.m. Oct. 17, the duo placed the bomb near a sixth-floor toilet in the HoBa Homa office building to test whether it would work. Half an hour later, the bomb exploded, destroying the toilet, an elevator and a warehouse.

On March 2 this year, he and Cai made four more bombs which were placed in different parts of HoBa Homa’s office building. Wu then wrote a letter to the company, demanding money. However, the letter failed to reach the company and they didn’t get any money from the company. The bombs were discovered before they went off.

A bomb placed by the duo exploded on the evening of June 4 and destroyed a service counter while two bombs placed in a men’s room and on top of the company’s office building were found in time and defused by police June 15. HoBa Homa deposited 53,000 yuan into Wu’s bank account, 35,000 yuan of which was withdrawn by Wu and Cai in Shenzhen, Huidong, Shantou, Dongguan and Puning.

After Cai was arrested in Shantou on July 1, Wu wrote another letter to the company, threatening to continue setting off bombs if it didn’t drop charges against Cai. Wu was arrested July 6 in Pinghu, Longgang District.

(SD News)