What’s new: A Communist Party secretary in South China’s Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region has been removed from his post and expelled from the party after being found guilty of a series of misconduct, including the use of witchcraft to curse investigators and leaders.
Qin Shengxian, former party secretary of Jinchengjiang district of Hechi city, was punished for “serious violations of (party) discipline and law,” a term that usually refers to corruption, according to a statement (link in Chinese) published last week by the Guangxi graft watchdog. He was placed under investigation in November, when he was serving as party secretary of the Hechi agricultural machinery service center.
What’s more: The investigation found Qin had taken “particularly large sums of bribes,” the statement said. The 52-year-old was also found trying to use witchcraft to curse investigators and relevant leaders in the hope of escaping punishment, the statement added.
Other misconduct included having sexual relationships with multiple women and not really believing in the “Marxist-Leninist” thesis, according to the statement. He was also accused of having long been engaged in “feudal superstitious activities.”
The graft watchdog said Qin’s illegal gains have been confiscated and his case has been transferred to prosecutors.
Contact reporter Wang Xintong (xintongwang@caixin.com) and editor Lu Zhenhua (zhenhualu@caixin.com)
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