What’s new: The former mayor of southern China’s tech hub Shenzhen admitted taking more than 108 million yuan ($15 million) in bribes during his trial Thursday, according to a court statement.
Chen Rugui stood trial in a court in Nanning, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, where prosecutors said he accepted the bribes between 2003 and 2022 in exchange for favors such as help in securing projects and facilitating business operations.
Chen abused his influence while working in a number of positions in South China’s Guangdong province, including director of construction in provincial capital Guangzhou and mayor of Shenzhen, said the statement. The court did not announce a verdict for the 61-year-old.
The background: In June 2022, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the Communist Party’s top corruption watchdog, announced a probe into Chen. Six months later, he was expelled from the party and public office.
The matter under investigation might have occurred during his nearly three-decade-long career in Guangzhou, Caixin previously learned.
A person familiar with Guangzhou’s urban construction system told Caixin the city launched a campaign in 2002 to demolish unfinished buildings where construction had been abandoned or shelved by developers, and that Chen had been responsible for this work for over ten years. Many corruption cases were found to have links with the campaign, the person said.
Contact reporter Wang Xintong (xintongwang@caixin.com) and editor Jonathan Breen (jonathanbreen@caixin.com)
Get our weekly free Must-Read newsletter.
