China’s defence ministry confirms probe of leading general Wang Jianping
Ministry announcement verifies August report that Wang had been arrested
A top general in the People’s Liberation Army has been placed under investigation on suspicion of taking bribes, becoming the first incumbent senior military official to be targeted in the China’s anti-graft campaign, the defence ministry confirmed on Thursday.
General Wang Jianping, 63, the deputy chief of the Joint Staff Department under the powerful Central Military Commission, is under probe by military prosecutors, Yang Yujun, the spokesman of China’s Ministry of National Defence said at a monthly press conference.
The announcement confirmed a South China Morning Post report in August that Wang, a former ally of disgraced security tsar Zhou Yongkang, had been arrested for violating Communist Party discipline, a euphemism for corruption.
The defence ministry did not give any more details of the investigation. A source told the Post in August that Wang had been taken away in Chengdu, Sichuan province. His wife, secretary and former secretary were also held, the source said.
Wang is the first general in active military service to be investigated since President Xi Jinping launched a high-profile crackdown in 2012 on corruption, which he said is a major threat to Communist Party rule and social stability.