[Photo/IC]

A man who raped three girls was executed on July 24, the top court said.

He Long, who raped three girls all under the age of 14 and forced them to be prostitutes after he purchased, kidnapped or lured them in 2014, was executed on July 24 morning by the Linyi Intermediate People's Court in Shandong province after the Supreme People's Court approved his death penalty.

In a statement issued by the Supreme People's Court, it said the case showed its determination to protect juveniles by giving harsh penalties to criminals who sexually assault children.

Also on Wednesday, the top court detailed another four influential cases in which defendants were penalized for raping or committing indecent acts on juveniles, aiming to show Chinese courts' strong resolve to act against such offenses.

In one case, Jiang Chengfei was sentenced to 11 years in prison by a district people's court in Nanjing, Jiangsu province. Jiang persuaded 31 girls to send him nude pictures and forced them to have a nude chat with him via QQ, a popular instant messaging tool, from May 2015 to November 2016.

The defendant appealed to a higher court, but the original ruling was supported by the Nanjing Intermediate People's Court.

"Although Jiang didn't touch the girls directly, his behavior also seriously harmed the children," the court said.

Courts nationwide have always exhibited "zero-tolerance" for defendants who sexually assault juveniles, and those who harmed children with extremely cruel behavior were sentenced to death without hesitation in line with the Chinese Criminal Law, the statement said.

Statistics from the top court show that courts across the country concluded 3,567 cases of child molestation last year, 605 more than in 2017. From January to June, the number reached 1,803.

Defendants in about 30 percent of these cases caused sexual harm to children through instant messaging tools, and victims have become younger, the statement said.

"The rising figure, on one hand, means legal awareness to protect juveniles has been enhanced in society, while on the other hand it represents that the judicial fight against such offenses has also been strengthened," the top court said.

For example, some courts in Shandong and Sichuan provinces have worked with local public security departments, education institutes and civil affairs administrations to intensify security training for left-behind children to improve their awareness of self-protection, the statement said.

Meanwhile, some internet enterprises have also been urged by judicial authorities to increase reviews of online content to ensure harmful information can be removed in a timely manner, and to design and offer a much safer online environment for children, it added.

Xu Hao, a criminal lawyer at Beijing Jingshi Law Firm, said the disclosed cases will be a guide to help judges more effectively handle such offenses and offer more accurate sentences.