2 sentenced to die in plot to steal oil
Two men were sentenced to death for masterminding a plan to steal oil from an underwater pipeline, a botched plot that caused an estimated $53 million in damages, China’s state news agency reported.
The court heard that a gang drilled into what they thought was an oil pipeline in the Shengli oilfield in Shandong in June 2005. It turned out to be a natural gas pipeline, and the leak was not discovered for nearly a year.
The gang stole about 65 barrels of oil by drilling into another pipeline. The hole was not discovered for five months.
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