A Chinese court on Monday (July 6) sentenced a former local official to death for taking bribes. The name of the officer is Yang Youlin. It is alleged that he misused his position for 30 years and took huge bribes. Yang was a former economic development officer in Nanjing, the capital of Jiangsu province on the east coast of China.
Changzhou Intermediate People’s Court said in a statement released on Monday that Yang illegally acquired assets worth 2.21 billion yuan (about 325 million US dollars or 30 billion rupees) between 1993 and 2023. Apart from this, charges of embezzlement of government funds, misuse of position and money laundering were also proved against him. His illegally acquired wealth was one of the highest in recent years.
what is the allegation
According to media reports, 69-year-old Yang Youlin worked in different important positions in Nanjing from 1993 to 2023. He used his influence and authority to help people get engineering contracts, transfer of land and financial facilities. In return he took huge bribe in the form of cash and valuables.
President’s anti-corruption campaign
Yang Youlin was investigated as part of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s anti-corruption campaign, which also covers the military ranks and high-level banking, among other areas. Critics say that this campaign is also used to remove political opponents. The court said on Monday that Yang, who spent most of his career working on economic and technological development in Nanjing, had committed extremely serious crimes. This caused huge damage to the interests of the state and the people.
Yang admitted the crime
The court told that during the hearing, Yang confessed to his crimes and also expressed deep remorse for his actions. The court also released some photographs. In these, white-haired Yang is wearing a dark colored jacket. He is seen standing between two police officers wearing uniform. He also helped the investigating agencies in some cases but the court said that his crimes were so serious that no relief could be given to him in his punishment on the basis of this cooperation.
Yang’s assets will be confiscated
The public hearing of this case was held on 2 different days in March and April. According to the court, more than 30 people were present during both the hearings. The court ordered that Yang’s personal property be confiscated. Also, instructions have been given to the officers that the entire amount taken as bribe should be recovered.
Death sentence given earlier also
Many senior officials in China have been given death sentence in corruption cases. Earlier in the year 2021, Lai Xiaomin, the party secretary of a state-owned company, was given death sentence after being convicted in bribery, embezzlement and bigamy cases and was later hanged. In the same year 2024, Li Jianping, an officer of Inner Mongolia, was hanged after being found guilty of bribery.
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