In an apparently major miscarriage of justice, China's top court on Friday exonerated a convicted man 21 years after his execution, citing that the "evidences are insufficient."

Nie Shubin, who was 21 years old at the day of execution, was convicted in 1995 for raping and murdering a woman in Shijiazhuang city in northern province of Hebei. The body of the woman was found by her father at the outskirts of the city.

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However, China's supreme court on Friday ruled that Nie's conviction in 1995 was based on inconclusive evidences.   

"The Supreme People's Court believes that the facts used in the original trial were unclear and the evidence insufficient, and so changes the original sentence to one of innocence," it said in a statement on its official social media account.

The statement added that there are doubts over the credibility Nie's confession of guilt, which apparently was the primary evidence in the trails.   

An official from the Supreme People's Court said in a interview to Chinese state media that there are several important lessons to be learned from the case that upheld the conviction on poor evidences.   

Nie Shubin's Family Becomes Emotional

Meanwhile, Nie's family could not hold on to their tears after they learned about the verdict. Their video, where the entire family is seen crying, has reportedly gone viral on China's Twitter-like microblogging site Weibo.

The Hebei provincial court also came forward to offer its apology and said that the application process to offer financial support to the family will be started immediately and re-examination of the case will be initiated as well.    

The family has been campaigning for justice of their slain son since 2005, when another man, Wang Shujin, confessed to the murder and rape of the Shijiazhuang woman. Wang's sudden confession led to public outcry across China over the supposed miscarriage of justice in Nie's case.    

Buoyed by unprecedented public support, Nie's family appealed for re-opening and re-examination of case by the court.

Execution is Said to be Most Common in China  

Human right activists claim that execution in China is more common than anywhere else in the world.

Their claim is apparently fueled by the fact that Chinese government keeps 'execution numbers' a top secret. The annual execution numbers in China run close to 1,000, according to rough estimate.    

TagsNie Shubin Case, china, Execution in China, China's Supreme Court