China

Former anti-graft official sentenced

(China Daily)
Updated: 2010-09-10 07:42

JINAN - A court in Shandong province sentenced a former top anti-corruption official in East China's Zhejiang province to death with a two-year reprieve on Thursday for taking bribes.

The Intermediate People's Court of Zaozhuang delivered the verdict nearly two months after Wang Huayuan's trial began on July 14.

Wang was charged with accepting bribes and failing to explain the source of his personal assets, all of which have been confiscated.

Wang was accused of abusing his position as secretary of the provincial commissions for discipline inspection in Guangdong and Zhejiang between 1998 and 2009.

In return for bribes, Wang dispensed favorable treatment that benefited others in business, employment, litigation and avoiding arrest, according to the court.

He was charged with taking 7.71 million yuan ($1.13 million) in bribes.

Wang was unable to explain the source of some of his other personal assets worth 8.94 million yuan.

The court said the bribes were "enormous" and that Wang's offenses were "extremely serious". But considering Wang had cooperated with investigators, confessed to all his crimes and returned all the illegally gained assets, he was given a suspended death sentence. It is unclear whether Wang will appeal.

Wang, 62, was detained and put under investigation in April last year. He was stripped of his membership of the Communist Party of China and his post in August the same year.

He was one of the eight ministerial-level officials investigated for corruption last year.

Xinhua