The trial of senior economic official Liu Tienan concluded today. Liu, former deputy head of the National Development and Reform Commission and head of the National Energy Administration, has been accused of accepting millions of dollars in bribes. He was expelled from the Communist Party in August 2013 and has been under investigation since then. From Dan Levin at the New York Times:
Mr. Liu, who was expelled from the Communist Party last year, is one of the first senior officials felled under President Xi Jinping’s anticorruption campaign to have gone on trial. The charges, which date back more than a decade, accuse him of accepting millions of dollars, company shares and a Nissan from businessmen.
He is also accused of allowing businessmen to give his son, Liu Decheng, bribes including a villa, a Porsche and $1.2 million salary for a nonexistent job. Prosecutors are seeking a life sentence for Liu Tienan; his son is to be tried separately.
[…] But even as the anticorruption campaign has brought down high-ranking officials once thought to be untouchable, such as China’s former security chief Zhou Yongkang, the authorities have been making it increasingly difficult for muckraking citizens to expose official wrongdoing. In June, the government announced rules barring journalists from writing articles without their employers’ permission or setting up their own websites. Last month, new regulations on social media platforms barred users with public accounts from posting or reposting news about politics or current affairs without government approval. [Source]
The BBC has more on the charges against him:
In another statement on the charges, the court said that between 2002 and 2012, Liu Tienan is accused of using his senior positions in the commission and other agencies to benefit five companies.
They include the Nanshan Group based in Shandong province, which owns several aluminium factories as well as a golf club, wine company, and schools.
Mr Liu is said to have helped the company easily procure oxidised aluminium, as well as approving and facilitated several projects for other businesses including a car dealership and petrochemical plant.
He and his son are said to have received cash gifts in return. In addition Mr Liu was given a Nissan Teana, while his son received a Beijing villa and a Porsche, prosecutors said. [Source]
According to official news accounts, Liu confessed to accepting bribes, though the verdict has not yet been announced. From Xinhua:
“Alone or together with his son Liu Decheng, Liu Tienan illegally received money and properties worth more than 35.6 million yuan (5.8 million U.S. dollars) from five people… and should be criminally charged for bribery,” said his indictment. Liu Decheng has been dealt with in a separate trial.
Liu the senior pleaded guilty to taking bribes at the conclusion of the trial, saying he would accept any punishment.
“Faced with the facts, I have been asking myself every time I read the indictment, is this me? How did I end up like this?” said tearful Liu, according to court scripts post on its official microblog.
“Each morning as I wake up, I wonder where I am and how I have fallen into this state of depravation,” said Liu, adding it is he also led his son down the wrong road. [Source]
