Murder Suspect Ng Ordered to Stand Trial in 12 Killings
SAN ANDREAS, Calif. — A Calaveras County judge on Thursday ordered mass murder suspect Charles Ng to stand trial on 12 counts of homicide.
Ng, 31, a martial arts expert and native of Hong Kong, is accused of torturing and murdering his victims in 1985 at a secluded mountain ranch about 150 miles east of San Francisco near Wilseyville.
His former companion, survivalist Leonard Lake, committed suicide with a cyanide capsule shortly after being arrested in June, 1985, for shoplifting at a South San Francisco hardware store. Ng, who was with Lake, managed to escape and fled to Canada, where he was captured a month later. Ng was returned to the United States last year to stand trial.
On Thursday, Ng was shackled in wrist and ankle chains and sat at the defense table without speaking, flanked by two guards. Justice Court Judge Douglas Mewhinney set Dec. 2 for Ng’s arraignment in Superior Court here. No trial date was set. He faces a possible death sentence if convicted.
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