Sexual Homicides in China: Exploring the Offender, Victim, and Offense Characteristics

Criminal Behav Ment Health

Liu

et al. 2019

Self Cite

Background Information on sexual homicides in China is scarce, particularly with respect to the offenders' primary motivation for the offence. Aims Our aim was to examine how offence characteristics of sexual murderers relate to different primary motivations. Methods The offender, victim, and offence characteristics of 67 sexual homicides, derived from police data of three regions and published case reports (1994–2017), were explored and compared according to offenders' primary motivation. Results Heterosexual sexual homicides were committed by offenders who were mainly driven by power and control, sex, and anger, compared with slightly over half of those who motivated primarily by financial gain. Sexual murderers whose killing was mainly driven by sex, money, and anger were more likely to target strangers, whereas offenders who motivated primarily by power and control were more likely to target an intimate partner. Victim abduction was more frequently seen in offenders who were motivated predominantly by money than other motives. Relative to financial gain as primary motivation, sexual killers who were mainly driven by sex, power and control, and anger were more likely to mutilate their victim. Implications for practice This study adds data to a field rarely studied anywhere and hardly at all in China. Findings may offer some help for criminal investigators who need to prioritise their investigative strategies. Once the individual is convicted and sentenced, they may help direct management and/or therapeutic strategies.

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The primary motivation of sexual homicide offenders in China: Was it for sex, power and control, anger, or money?

Criminal Behav Ment Health

Liu

et al. 2019

Self Cite

“…Relative to non‐mutilation sexual murderers, those who performed victim mutilation were least likely to be motivated by financial gain (e.g., money). Consistent with the extant literature, post‐mortem mutilation and dismemberment of the victim suggests that the sexual murderers may be acting out their sadistic fantasies (Chan, , , ; Chan, Heide, & Beauregard, ). These are seen as common post‐murder ritualistic behaviors against child victims (Beauregard, Stone, Proulx, & Michaud, ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 73%

“…Despite the tremendous increase of academic attention in terms of numbers of empirical studies conducted on the subject (i.e., from 32 published in 1986–2007 (22‐year period), Chan & Heide, , to 47 empirical studies published in 2008–2015 (8‐year period), Chan, ), little is known about the offending dynamics of sexual homicides that occurred in China. To date, only two studies have been published on Chinese sexual homicides (Chan, Li, Liu, & Lu, ; Chan, Li, Liu, Lu, & Jia, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Victim body mutilation in sexual homicides: Exploring Chinese sexual homicide cases

Behavioral Sci & The Law

2019

Self Cite

Little exists beyond medicolegal case reports on victim mutilation homicides, much less on those occurring in the context of sexual homicides. As limited information is available on sexual homicides that occurred in China, this study aims to explore the offending characteristics of sexual homicide offenders (SHOs) who mutilated their victims and to compare their modus operandi with non‐mutilation sexual murderers. The offender, victim, and offense characteristics of 82 sexual homicide cases (i.e., 31 mutilation and 47 non‐mutilation cases; 1988–2018), derived from police data of three regions and published case reports, were examined. In addition to the descriptive offender and victim characteristics of Chinese SHOs who performed victim body mutilation, findings indicate that offenders who mutilated their victims were more likely than those who did not mutilate the victim to have a previous sexual offense conviction. They were motivated primarily by sex and least motivated by financial gain. Victim abduction prior to the offense was more frequently reported in non‐mutilation sexual murders. These findings may offer some insights for police who need to prioritize their investigative strategies in cases of sexual homicide with victim mutilation.

Sex worker homicides and sexual homicides: A comparative study of offender, victim, and offense characteristics

Behavioral Sci & The Law

2021

Self Cite

Sex workers are commonly claimed to be at heightened risk of fatal victimization. Although prior research indicates that the dynamics of sex worker homicides resemble sexual homicides more than nonsexual homicides, little is known about how these types of homicides compare in terms of offending patterns. This study considers a sample of 2,851 single‐victim, single‐offender homicide cases extracted from a 37‐year (1976–2012) US Supplementary Homicide Reports database, and compares the offender, victim, and offender characteristics of 243 sex worker homicides (189 males and 54 females) with those of 2608 sexual homicides (2474 males and 134 females). The findings suggest that the offender, victim, and offense characteristics of general, male‐offender, and female‐offender sex worker homicides are essentially different from the characteristics of sexual homicides. Logistic regressions further indicate that most offender, victim, and offense characteristics on the occurrence of general and male‐offender sex worker homicides were significantly associated with the perpetration of general and male‐offender sex worker homicides, with reference to sexual homicides. These findings offer insights relevant to the prioritization of criminal investigative practices.