Six people were sentenced to prison in China on Friday for the abuse and illegal imprisonment of a woman whose story sparked outrage after videos surfaced online last year showing her chained by the neck.

The woman — referred to as Xiaouhamei, or Little Plum Blossom — is believed to have been abducted and sold several times, state news agency Xinhua reported Friday.

Dong Zhimin, the man who had kept her since 1998, was sentenced to nine years behind bars.

Five other people also received prison sentences — ranging from eight to 13 years — for trafficking the woman decades ago, according to the verdict handed down by the Xuzhou Intermediate People’s Court in the eastern coastal province of Jiangsu.

The woman was first abducted from her hometown in Yunnan Province and taken to Jiangsu Province in early 1998, where she was sold to a man in Donghai County for 5,000 yuan ($790).

She was trafficked three times before being purchased by Dong and his late father, also for 5,000 yuan.

Authorities say between 1999 and 2020, Little Plum Blossom gave birth to eight of Dong’s children.

Even as the mother of his kids, Dong shackled the victim and frequently starved her, police said. He also abused her by chaining her around the neck and tying her body with ropes.

For years, Little Plum Blossom lived in a room with no sunlight, electricity or running water. She has since been diagnosed with schizophrenia, a condition worsened by Dong’s abusive acts, the court said.

With New Wire Services