Former head of China Geological Survey given a 13-year sentence

Zhong Ziran, the former head of the China Geological Survey, a division of the Ministry of Natural Resources, was sentenced to 13 years in prison for bribery and intentionally leaking State secrets, according to a verdict on Wednesday.

The verdict was announced by a court in Ningbo city, Zhejiang province. Zhong, who was also a former member of the Party leadership group of the ministry, was also fined two million yuan ($272,200), according to Xinhua News Agency.

Through its investigation, the court found that Zhong, from 2011 to 2023, took advantage of his positions in the division and ministry to seek benefits for some individuals and departments in various matters such as project contracting, business operation and work promotion, and then accepted bribes worth more than 23.56 million yuan ($3.21 million) in return.

In addition, Zhong violated the law and handed over confidential documents to unauthorized individuals for reading and keeping in 2019.