File photo of Yang Jiyuan[courtesy of Qianjiang Evening News]

Four suspects suspected of stabbing a 22-year-old university student to death on New Year's Eve were caught in Hangzhou, of east China's Zhejiang province, local media reported Saturday.

Yang Jiyuan, a third-year student from Zhejiang University of Technology, and two other students tried to stop the suspects from stealing near the university on the last day of 2009.


In the ensuing tussle, Yang was stabbed in the stomach and died later in the hospital, according to the Qianjiang Evening News. After an intensive search of 18 hours, all four suspects were caught.

Yang enjoyed a good reputation as the class monitor and was an enthusiastic participant in community-building activities.