Beijing, Feb. 2: The former chairwoman of the Sanlu Group, Tian Wenhua, has lodged an appeal to overturn a life sentence for her role in the melamine milk contamination scandal, her lawyer said.

Liang Zikan said Tian had appealed to the Higher People''s Court of Hebei Province because the judgment in the first trial did not clearly distinguish the facts and lacked evidence, Xinhua reports.

Hong Kong  - Police in Hong Kong on Monday were investigating a 12-year-old schoolboy who posted naked pictures of himself online and offered himself as a gigolo for women as old as 45.

The boy gave himself the nickname Little Leung and offered sexual services to "females between the ages of 10 and 45" on an adult friendship forum, the Hong Kong Standard reported.

Hong Kong  - Police in Hong Kong were Sunday investigating whether a serial killer is behind the murders of three prostitutes in three weeks.

The latest victim was a 38-year-old Thai prostitute was found murdered in the flat where she worked in the city's Kowloon district on Saturday night.

The killing followed the murders of two other prostitutes who were found suffocated in apartments in other areas of the city on January 10 and 11.

Kuala Lumpur  - Malaysian airport police detained an Indian national found carrying 7.5 kilograms of the hallucinogen ketamine hidden in soap bars upon his arrival at the international airport, news reports said Sunday.

The suspect, in his 40s, had arrived at the Bayan Lepas International Airport in the northern Penang state Thursday night from Bangkok, Thailand with 147 soap bars hidden in his two bags, the Star daily reported.