Chinese man who lived with mentally disabled woman for 13 years and raised four children, is charged with rape
PUBLISHED : Wednesday, 30 September, 2015, 4:26pm
UPDATED : Wednesday, 30 September, 2015, 4:26pm
Jun Mai
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The couple's bed in their sparsely furnished home. Photo: Thepaper.cn
An impoverished Chinese man has been charged for raping a mentally challenged woman whom he has lived with in a de facto marriage for 13 years and fathered her four children, a news website reported.
Liu Huaji, 48, had sex with the woman while knowing she was mentally disabled, which could constitute rape, prosecutors in Anhui province argued.
After his arrest in May, the woman was transferred to a nearby mental health institute and their four children were sent to a welfare centre, the Shanghai-based new outlet Thepaper.cn reported.
Liu’s lawyer Kang Shirao said his client posed no danger to society and had been a guardian for the woman and their children.
Liu, a poor and lonesome man from Liuzhu village in Woyang County, met then woman in a curious encounter in Shanghai 13 years ago. She had approached Liu on the street and grabbed hold of his leg. After offering her a bun to eat, she followed him uninvited all the way back to his home village.
Liu, was single and too poor to afford a decent wedding, decided to take her as his wife, Kang quoted Liu as saying.
Liu is listed as married on his hukou, or household registration. But he never knew the woman’s name, age or birthplace as she could barely talk.
Liu insisted that the woman only agreed to sleep with him a month after he had taken her into his home.
Neighbours described the woman as “pretty insane” and would sometimes walk around the village with a bare bottom and could spend the whole day sitting in the yard. She sometimes tried to beat other villagers.
On the other hand, Liu took good care of her and the four children, the villagers said.
He said he only locked the gate of his yard after she slashed his head with a knife in 2003 and bit one of the children on the hand several years later.
Despite his poverty, Liu insisted on raising the children on his own, turning down adoption offers. A bed, table, fridge and tiny TV are all the furniture they have in the house.
A table, fridge and tiny television are practically the only belongings in the home. Photo: Thepaper.cn
