Former Xinjiang official pleads guilty

Li Pengxin, a former senior official of the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous regional government, pleaded guilty to charges of accepting bribes of over 822 million yuan ($112 million) on Thursday.

Li, who served as deputy secretary of Xinjiang's regional committee of the Communist Party of China, faced trial at the Intermediate People's Court in Baoji, Shaanxi province, regarding his bribery case.

He was charged with misusing his positions in Qinghai province, the Inner Mongolia autonomous region and Xinjiang from 1999 to 2023 to provide assistance to others in matters such as mineral exploration, business operations and official appointments. It was alleged that he directly or through intermediaries illegally accepted over 822 million yuan in bribes in return.

He was expelled from the Party and dismissed from public office over serious violations of Party discipline and laws in June.

Li, 65, is a native of Shanxi province. He started his career in 1977 and joined the Party in 1984.

He worked in Qinghai from 1977 to 2011, in positions that included Party chief of Haixi Mongolian and Tibetan autonomous prefecture and head of the Commission for Political and Legal Affairs of the CPC Qinghai provincial committee.

From October 2011 to September 2016, he led the Organization Department of the CPC committee in Inner Mongolia. He later started working in Xinjiang, serving as deputy secretary of its CPC committee and head of Xinjiang's education work committee until July 2021.