Bank boss who fled with billions returned to China by US

Xu Chaofan, former head of the Kaiping subbranch of Bank of China in Guangdong province, has been returned to China from the United States to face trial on charges of embezzlement and corruption, the Communist Party of China’s Central Commission for Discipline Inspection announced on Wednesday.

It said 2 billion yuan ($302.8 million) of Xu’s ill-gotten gains had been retrieved.

“The successful repatriation is considered an important achievement of Sino-US anti-corruption law enforcement cooperation,” the CCDI said in a statement.

“He is the first corrupt fugitive repatriated from abroad since the National Supervisory Commission was set up (in March).”

Xu was accused of corruption and the embezzlement of $485 million in bank funds. He fled to the US in 2001 and Interpol issued a red notice for his arrest.

Xu was detained by US judicial authorities in 2003 and sentenced to 25 years in jail by a court in Las Vegas in 2009 for fraud and money laundering.