What’s new: Former deputy head of the then State Administration of Grain, Xu Ming, has pleaded guilty of taking more than 52.4 million yuan ($7.6 million) in bribes, according to an intermediate court in the eastern province of Fujian.
The 65-year-old is accused of taking advantage of his past roles at the Ministry of Commerce and the then State Economic and Trade Commission, among others, to help others in obtaining project contracts, business approvals and job promotions between 1995 and 2021, Xiamen Intermediate People’s Court said in a Thursday statement.
Even during retirement, prosecutors said Xu accepted 1.2 million yuan in bribes in June 2021 to seek benefits for others in legal case handling, leveraging his positions on the Chongqing Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China.
The court said Xu’s sentence will be announced at a later date.
The background: Xu’s trial came almost one year after he was arrested by the country’s top prosecuting organ in February 2022. He was placed under investigation by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection in July 2021.
Xu previously worked under Bo Xilai, the former Politburo member and Chongqing party chief who was sentenced to life in prison in October 2013 for bribery and abuse of power.
A native of Fengyang in central China’s Anhui province, Xu was appointed as secretary-general of the Chongqing Municipal Party Committee in 2010. He served as the deputy head of the State Administration of Grain from 2013 to 2018.
Contact reporter Kelly Wang (jingzhewang@caixin.com) and editor Bertrand Teo (bertrandteo@caixin.com)
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