Zheng Minsheng (ZHANG GUOJUN)

Zheng Minsheng, a former community doctor in southeastern Fujian Province, was sentenced to death on April 8 for murdering eight primary school students last month.

Zheng, 41, pleaded guilty to charges of "intentionally killing" the students on March 23 at the gate of the Nanping Experimental Elementary School. He launched the early morning attack as students were arriving for school.

Prosecutors said Zheng, who is not married, had been suffered failures in relationships and in his career, so he felt life was meaningless.

The police's investigation shows Zheng had no history of mental illness.

After he was arrested, Zheng confessed he had planned to kill 30 students. Besides killing eight, Zheng also injured five other children who are in recovery.