Former Hebei official stands trial for bribery

Xie Jilai, former vice-chairman of the Standing Committee of Hebei Provincial People's Congress, stood trial and pleaded guilty to taking bribes worth 88.7 million yuan ($12.2 million) at the First Intermediate People's Court of Tianjin Municipality on Thursday.

According to the indictment from the first branch of the Tianjin Municipal People's Procuratorate, Xie repeatedly illegally accepted property and money from others from 1999 to 2020, amounting to more than 88.7 million yuan.

From November 2002 to January 2017, Xie made use of his various positions, including deputy head of the Organization Department of the CPC Hebei Provincial Committee, and leveraged his authority and status to seek benefits for others in job promotion and adjustment as well as project development.

The prosecutors requested Xie be held criminally responsible for the crime of accepting bribes, and gave related evidence in court.

During the trial, Xie made a final statement and expressed remorse. The court will release its verdict on another date.

Xie, 70, a native of Jinzhou in Hebei, began working in 1972 and joined the Party in 1980.

The country's top anti-graft bodies, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission, placed him under investigation in January 2022, after which he was expelled from the Party.

In another case, Wang Xuefeng, also a former vice-chairman of the Standing Committee of the Hebei Provincial People's Congress, was expelled from the Party over serious violations of Party discipline and national law, according a statement issued by CCDI and NSC on Thursday.

According to an investigation by the top anti-graft bodies, Wang had seriously damaged the local political ecology in Hebei by illegally canvassing for votes and buying or selling positions without restraint.

He had also illegally accepted a huge amount of property and money from others and took advantage of his positions for others' promotion, jobs' adjustment and corporate management in return for money, the statement said.

His case will be transferred to prosecutors for review and prosecution.