Yunnan official accused of bribery caught in Singapore
A provincial transportation official who fled to Singapore in January while being investigated for corruption has been taken into custody and accused of accepting more than 40 million yuan in bribes.
Hu Xing, 48, former deputy director of the Yunnan Transportation Department, was also accused of abusing his power to help his relatives profit from business activities, keeping a mistress, having 'unlawful sexual relationships' with several other women and fleeing abroad.
Hu fled with the help of his brother in January while local authorities were investigating his involvement in a major economic crime, Guo Yongdong, deputy secretary of the Yunnan Commission for Discipline Inspection, told Xinhua.
Earlier media reports said Hu's disappearance was related to the arrest of Zeng Hua, a friend of Hu's and former head of the Kunming Urban Planning and Land Administration Bureau. The Ministry of Public Security had issued a nationwide wanted notice for Hu and offered a 50,000 yuan reward for information leading to his arrest.
'Hu Xing was captured in Singapore on February 18,' Mr Guo said. 'He was expelled from the Communist Party and removed from his post on April 24.'
Guangzhou Daily reported that police watched Hu after he arrived in the city state on February 15. Hu, who had entered Singapore with a fake passport, was taken back to China on February 19.
Hu had served as construction committee director, urban planning bureau director and vice-mayor in charge of urban construction in Kunming before taking the deputy chief post in November 2004.
Initial investigations alleged that Hu had taken bribes of 40.29 million yuan to help real estate developers win project approval, Mr Guo said.
He also helped a company owned by his brother win a project that yielded 140 million yuan in profit. His brother made 13.73 million yuan in profit in two other projects through similar means.
Mr Guo said Hu kept a mistress, who had a daughter by him, and bought her cars and houses in Kunming and Shenzhen. Prosecutors are considering the case.
