Former chairman of Bank of China and 2 others arrested on bribery charges in China – JURIST

Chinese officials arrested former chairman of the Bank of China Liu Liange on corruption charges, Chinese official state news agency Xinhua reported on Monday. The Supreme People’s Procuratorate (SPP) filed the charges against Liu, who is under suspicion of bribery and providing illegal loans, for his role as leader of the state-owned bank from 2019 through March of this year.

According to a statement from the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) and the National Supervisory Commission—the country’s top anti-corruption authorities—seen by ChinaDaily.com, Liu was expelled from the Chinese Communist Party (CPC) on October 7 over the alleged infractions. The two main claims against Liu include bribery and illegal loan issuance. The bribery allegations stem from findings from the two commissions that Liu exploited his position to seek out benefits for others in finance and project collaboration. In exchange, Liu allegedly accepted large quantities of money and gifts. The illegal loan issuance claims stem from findings that Liu interfered in credit initiatives and illegally issued loans.

The CCDI is the highest internal control institution of the CPC, entrusted with implementing internal rules and regulations as well as combating corruption and misconduct within the party. While they conducted the investigation into Liu, alongside the National Supervisory Commission, the charges have now been handed off to the SPP. The SPP is China’s highest national agency responsible for legal prosecution and prosecutorial investigation. The SPP reports to the National People’s Congress.

Chinese officials also dismissed former deupty head of the General Administration of Sport of China Du Zhaocai and former vice-chairman of the Standing Committee of Jiangxi Provincial People’s Congress Yin Meigen alongside Liu. In a Saturday statement seen by ChinaDaily.com, the CCDI and National Supervisory Commission said they found Du resisted investigations and also partook in bribery schemes. Similarly, the commissions accused Yin of accepting bribes as well to “procure sex and meddling in market activities and law enforcement.” Like Liu, their cases have also been handed off to the SPP.

Chinese critics have accused China President Xi Jinping of using anti-corruption bodies, like the CCDI and the National Supervisory Commission, to remove dissenters from power. Between the founding of the National Supervisory Commission in 2012 and 2018, a report from the Foreign Policy Research Institute found that the commission leveled corruption-related allegations against 1.5 million government officials.