JINAN, June 21 -- A man has been sentenced to death by a court in east China's Shandong Province on Tuesday for setting a bus on fire in August 2014.

The defendant, Xu Xiaofu, sought revenge on society by causing the fire which left three people dead and 16 others injured because his improper demands had not been met, said the Intermediate People's Court of Yantai City, without specifying Xu's demand.

Xu took a bus with a bottle of petrol in his bag in the city of Longkou on August 20, 2014. He poured the petrol onto the clothes in the bag and started the fire on the bus around 8:30 a.m.

A passenger died at the scene and two others died in hospital. Six people were seriously injured.

Xu escaped after the fire but was arrested by police two days later.

Xu was sentenced to death and deprived of political rights for life by the court.

Xu said he would appeal to a higher court.