Five former officials to be prosecuted for graft

China's top anti-graft bodies have handed over the cases of five former senior officials to procuratorial departments for review and prosecution over allegations of serious violations, according to official statements issued on Wednesday.

The Communist Party of China Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Commission of Supervision announced the expulsion of four officials from the Party and handed over their cases to procuratorates for review and prosecution along with the involved stolen property. The fifth official, who is retired, had been arrested under the approval of the Supreme People's Procuratorate.

The officials are: Li Chunsheng, former vice-chairman of the Standing Committee of Guangdong Provincial People's Congress; Fu Zhongwei, former director of the Standing Committee of Shenyang People's Congress of Liaoning province; Zhang Fusheng, deputy head of fire and rescue administration of the Ministry of Emergency Management; Zhang Xiaopei, former vice-chairman of the Jilin Provincial Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference; and Zhou Jiankun, former vice-chairman of the CPPCC Guizhou Provincial Committee.

They are all alleged to have committed a series of wrongdoings, including accepting gifts and money against the central Party leadership's eight-point frugality code, being disloyal to the Party and concealing personal matters they were required to report, according to statements issued by the CCDI and NCS.

They also sought benefits for others in fields such as career promotion and project tenders, then accepted a huge amount of property in return, said the statements.

Li Chunsheng, Fu Zhongwei and Zhang Fusheng were also removed from their public posts by the NCS.

Li Chunsheng, 62, a native of Henan province, also squandered public funds, traded his power for sex and interfered in judicial, law enforcement and market economic activities, said the CCDI and NCS. Li turned himself in and was placed under investigation in December last year.

Fu Zhongwei resisted the Party organization's inspection, connived with relatives to take advantage of his power to seek private gain, and intervened in audit work, said the CCDI and NCS. Fu, 59, a native of Liaoning, spent almost all his career in Liaoning province from 1988 to 2022. He was subject to the investigation in November last year.

Zhang Fusheng also resisted the Party organization's inspection, owned shares in unlisted companies, and was addicted to gambling, said the CCDI and NCS. Zhang, 60, a native of Liaoning, worked in the Ministry of Public Security from 1995 to 2018 and became the deputy head of fire and rescue administration in 2019. He was placed under investigation in November last year.

Zhang Xiaopei also interfered in discipline inspection and law enforcement work, seriously destroyed the political ecology of the region where he worked, and used power to seek huge profits for relatives, said the CCDI and NCS. Zhang, 65, a native of Henan province, worked in different positions in Jilin province from 1976 to 2018. He retired in 2018 and turned himself in to the discipline inspection organ last year.

In another development, the SPP approved the arrest of Zhou Jiankun, former vice-chairman of the CPPCC Guizhou Provincial Committee, for suspected bribe-taking after the NCS concluded its investigation and handed over the case to prosecutors, the SPP said in a statement.

Zhou, 63, a native of Henan province, spent his career in Guizhou from 1977 to 2023. He was subject to investigation in November last year and expelled from the Party and removed from public posts earlier this month.