Ex-Hebei official sentenced to 18 years for bribery

Wang Xuefeng, a former vice-chairman of the Standing Committee of the Hebei Provincial People's Congress, was sentenced to 18 years in prison by the Taiyuan Intermediate People's Court in Shanxi province on Wednesday after being convicted of accepting more than 88 million yuan ($12.37 million) in bribery and using his influence to acquire bribes.

The court sentenced Wang to 15 years in prison for bribery and imposed a fine of eight million yuan. He also received a five-year sentence for using his influence to commit the crimes and was fined 400,000 yuan.

The court decided to combine the sentences, resulting in an 18-year prison term and a total fine of 8.4 million yuan. The illicit gains and interests seized in the case will be confiscated and turned over to the state treasury.

It was revealed that from 1999 to 2022, Wang abused his various positions, including Party chief of Tangshan, Hebei province, to unlawfully receive illegal gains totaling 84.07 million yuan. After retiring in 2018, he continued to leverage his influence for illicit gains, receiving over 4.11 million yuan in bribes until 2022.

The Court concluded that Wang's actions constituted serious bribery and using influence for bribery offenses, warranting legal punishment. However, considering Wang's confession, cooperation in providing previously unknown bribery and influence-peddling details, and the return of all illicit gains, his sentence was mitigated based on his confession and repentance.