Red graffiti reading "AIDS demolition team" on the walls of buildings in a residential community in Nanyang of Central China's Henan province. [Photo/shenghuoxinbao]

More than 20 officials in Nanyang, central Henan province were punished for accepting coupons offered by a company which hired an "AIDS demolition team" to threaten locals to vacate their homes for construction projects.

The publicity bureau of the Nanyang Party committee said in a statement Tuesday that 25 officials of the city's Wolong District attended a New Year's tea party organized by local Yi'an Property Development Co this month and each of them received 500 yuan ($80) worth of coupons.

All of the coupons were confiscated and Liu Xiaoli, chief of the Meixi street party committee, was removed from post and others were given disciplinary warnings.

The punishments came after Yi'an was involved in a scandal in which the company used supposed AIDS patients and HIV carriers to threaten some local residents who refused to sign demolition contracts.

Nanyang police said last week that they had detained a few suspects over the intimidation and Ma Bing, Party chief of Wolong district, said the district government has established a special task force to investigate the case.

Three housing bureau officials of Wolong were reprimanded over the scandal.

Henan was once known for having a high number of people living with HIV/AIDS, many of whom were infected as a result of selling their blood.