Three people received sentences ranging from three to five years in jail on Sunday for gas leaking that killed nine women on April 24 in Beijing.

The Chaoyang District Court sentenced two housing intermediaries, namely Qu Longmin and Liu Junwei, five years in jail and handed down a three year jail to the sales manger Liu Yingxin, who worked in the same company as the nine women.

The three rented the apartment to ten women before rolling out the danger of the water heater which leaked gas when the women were bathing and nine of them died from carbon monoxide poisoning, the judge said.

The women, aged 20 to 23, were employees of Beijing Zisonglin Real Estate Agent Co. Ltd. They moved into the rented room three days before the accident, local police said.

The apartment with two living rooms

(Xinhua News Agency December 21, 2008)