A gambler who murdered his friend, stuffed his dismembered body in a suitcase and set it on fire has been found guilty.
Ming Jiang 43, of Falconwood Way, Manchester, was found guilty of murder at Manchester Crown court today.
In October 2016 police discovered the torso of Yang Liu, from Salford, inside a burning suitcase on Woodhead Pass, Tintwistle. The rest of his body has never been found.
Enquiries revealed that the murder had taken place at Jiang’s house in Beswick and a search of the property found a number of blood stained items.
Evidence of a clean-up was also discovered where Jiang had attempted to wash sofa cushions and clothes in a bid to hide his crime.
After his death, Jiang assumed Lui’s identity and splurged over £100,000 of his money in the 235 Casino in the city centre.
When he was arrested, Jiang was found in possession of a number of Lui’s identification documents.
Detective Chief Inspector Terry Crompton, of GMP’s Major Incident Team, said: “My thoughts are with Lui’s family who have been completely torn apart by his death.
“I want to thank them for their support throughout and I’m sorry that they were not able to be here today to see this sentence due to illness.
“Not content with committing the brutal and disturbing murder of his friend, Jiang sought to hide his crimes by abandoning and burning his body before stealing his identity, emptying his bank account and trying to sell his property.
“The pain of Lui’s death will haunt his family every day but I hope that him being found guilty today will help them to begin to repair the damage inflicted by Jiang’s despicable crime.”
Paying tribute to him, Liu’s family said: “We could not believe that this disaster could have happened to us.
“The pain we’re suffering is beyond words. We think of our son all the time and we strongly condemn the brutality of the murderer.
“Our son was warm and full of life. He was also kind. Since birth, he always wore a smile on his face. He was well loved by his family, relatives and neighbours.
“When our son is mentioned, we cry with tears running down our faces. Our physical and mental sufferings can never ever be repaired.”
