Former Beijing official sentenced to prison for bribery

Gao Peng, the former vice-mayor of Beijing, was sentenced to 12 years in prison for accepting bribes and dereliction of duty during a first-instance trial on Tuesday by the Intermediate People's Court of Lyuliang in Shanxi province, China Central Television reported on Wednesday afternoon.

Gao was fined a sum of 3 million yuan ($421,300) and sentenced to 11 years for bribery, with an additional three years for dereliction of duty. Because he admitted guilt and returned his illicit gains, he will serve a total of 12 years in prison. His illegal gains will be confiscated and turned over to the state treasury, according to the court.

The court found that Gao abused various positions that he held from 2007 to 2024 to provide assistance to relevant individuals in job promotions, business operations, and project contracting, and illegally accepted more than 43.8 million yuan in bribes.

From May 2016 to June 2017, while serving as head of Beijing's Shunyi district and a construction leadership group for a local exhibition center, Gao was grossly negligent in site selection and acquisition processes, resulting in significant losses of state assets, the court said.