HENAN, China — A kindergarten teacher in China has been sentenced to death after she poisoned dozens of her colleague's young students, killing one of them.
Wang Yun was arrested last year after children at the kindergarten she worked at were taken the hospital after eating their porridge. A local court said she put sodium nitrite into the children's food, which sickened 25 children and eventually led to the death of one.
The court said she knew the substance was harmful and described the crime as "despicable" and "vicious."
Her "criminal methods and circumstances were exceedingly bad, with especially severe circumstances, and she should be severely punished in accordance with the law," the sentencing statement said.
Poisoning the children wasn't even the first time she'd used sodium nitrite, the court said. Back in 2017, she put it in her husband's food after an argument. He suffered "minor injuries" as a result.
Reportedly, Wang Yun had a conflict with another teacher, which prompted her to "retaliate" and put the sodium nitrite into the porridge.
Sodium nitrite is used for curing meats but can be toxic if ingested in high amounts, CBS News reported.
One child poisoned died in the hospital in January after they were hospitalized for 10 months, according to BBC News.
BBC News reports the death sentence in China is carried out by firing squad or lethal injection.
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