A man struggling with heavy debt was sentenced to death in Shanghai for killing his wife last March.

Shanghai First Intermediate People's Court, which heard the case on April 12, announced the sentence for the man, surnamed Gao, on Thursday.

Gao, who was found guilty of intentional homicide, didn't say whether he would appeal the sentence.

According to a copy of the procuratorate's indictment, at 8 am on March 2, 2022, Gao stabbed his wife repeatedly in the neck with a fruit knife, resulting in her death.

Gao placed an order to buy a freezer after the killing and posed as his wife in messages he sent to her family members and colleagues, the court said.

A day after receiving the freezer, he tried to hide her body in it but was unable to move her, according to the court.

He then contacted the police, claiming that his wife had committed suicide.

According to the family of the victim, she was a native of Shanghai and married Gao in 2015.

In 2019, the family learned that Gao had become addicted to playing the stock market. His addiction led him to incur massive debts, leading him to sell his house and borrow money from a number of lending platforms. His wife also borrowed money from her relatives to help pay his debts, the family said.

In previous reports, the family speculated that the tremendous financial pressure Gao was under may have led him to kill his wife.