BEIJING, Jan. 22 (UPI) -- Two dairy company officials convicted in China's tainted milk scandal Thursday were sentenced to die while others got jail terms, including life in prison.
The Shijiazhuang Intermediate People's Court imposed the death penalty on Zhang Yujun, found guilty of endangering public security, and Geng Jinping, convicted of producing and selling toxic food, China's state-run Xinhua reported.
The Chinese Ministry of Health said the melamine-contaminated milk powder and products killed at least six babies and sickened 296,000 more infants.
A third man received the death penalty with a two-year reprieve, meaning he could be spared from execution, The New York Times reported.
Among the three sentenced to life in prison was Tian Wenhua, the former chairwoman of the Sanlu Group, one of China's biggest dairy companies, whom authorities said failed to stop producing and selling the tainted goods even after learning the products were compromised. She pleaded guilty to failing to act properly and also was fined about $3 million.
Six others received sentences ranging from five years to 15 years in prison.
In all, 12 of the 21 defendants were sentenced Thursday by the court in Shijiazhuang, headquarters of Sanlu, Xinhua said. The nine other defendants would be sentenced in other courts.
Parents of some victims told the Times they were unhappy with the verdict.
"I feel sorry for them, but they are just scapegoats," said Liu Donglin, who says his 21-month old son suffered from kidney stones after drinking tainted milk powder. "The ones who should take the responsibility are the government, like the quality supervision bureau and the Health Ministry."
