The suspects for the fatal beating of a young mother at a McDonald's branch at Zhaoyuan in the Shandong province are announced to stand trial next week.

In the latter part of May this year, Wu Ting, 23, was brutally beaten by six purported members of a cult named the "Church of the Almighty God" in a McDonald's branch. According to witnesses, the group entered the restaurant and attempted to recruit the customers. The alleged cult members were said to demand for the mobile phone numbers of the people dining inside. During the reported "recruitment process", one woman refused to comply with the group's orders. This refusal then incited the supposed cult members to attack the woman.

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The move shocked and frightened the other customers, who claimed that the alleged cult members beat their victim to death despite the public venue and presence of witnesses. While attacking the woman, the other customers were warned not to interfere or they'll be facing the same fate. The sadistic attack was said to have been caught on the restaurant's CCTV, as well as the mobile phone cameras of some onlookers. The footage was then broadcasted on state TV, which expectedly appalled the nation.

An interview with one of the attackers, Zhang Lidong, showed an absence of repentance and anxiety over his crime.  

"I beat her with all my might and stamped on her too. She was a demon. We had to destroy her," he said in prison.

The website of the cult the "Church of the Almighty God" features inspiring hymns and homilies. According to the page, the members of the cult believe that God has come back to our world in the form of a Chinese woman. Among the cult members, the sole person with a direct contact this god is Zhao Weishan. A former physics professor, he was said to have created the cult 25 years ago. He is currently rumored to be living in the United States.

In a statement released by the Ministry of Public Security, the government clearly denounced the incident and vowed to eradicate this type of crimes in the society.

"Religious cults recruit and control adherents by fabricating and spreading superstitions and heresies," announced government officials via state news media.

TagsMcDonald, “Church of the Almighty God”, mother, Wu Ting, Xhang Lidong