China’s former state-assets chief sentenced to 16 years

World Today

File Picture: Jiang Jiemin (CFP)

Jiang Jiemin, former head of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, was sentenced to 16 years in prison on Monday by a local court in central China’s Hubei Province.

Jiang, 60, was found guilty of taking bribes, holding a huge amount of property with unidentified sources and abusing power. His personal assets worth 1 million yuan ($157,600) were also confiscated, the Hanjiang Intermediate People’s Court said. The court also ordered to confiscate other property he took as bribes or with unidentified sources as well as illegal earnings others got with his help.

Jiang accepted his sentence and will not appeal.

Jiang was chair of the board of China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) before working for the state-assets commission in March 2013. The court found that Jiang received 14 million yuan in bribes between 2004 and 2013 to help others get construction contracts and job promotions.

By the end of August 2013, his personal and family property exceeded the legitimate earnings and he had 14.8 million yuan ($2.3 million) unaccounted, the court said. With instruction and consent from Zhou Yongkang, a former member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, Jiang violated regulations by helping others in businesses, causing huge losses to the state, it added.

In a separate ruling Monday, Li Chuncheng, the former deputy party chief in China’s western Sichuan province, was sentenced to 13 years in jail for bribery and abuse of power. Li, who was also an aide to Zhou Yongkang, was detained in December 2012.

This story compiled with information from Xinhua News Agency.