Two more caught in corruption crackdown

Another two provincial officials have been tried for corruption, official press reported yesterday.

In Guangdong's Chaozhou city, a former police officer was convicted and sentenced to 19 years in prison for bribery, embezzlement and torture of suspects, the Hong Kong China News Agency reported.

Li Guisong was sentenced by Chaozhou Intermediate People's Court for accepting bribes worth more than 40,000 yuan (HK$37,600) and embezzling more than 290,000 yuan while head of the anti-vice division for almost three years from September 1997.

The report said Li took advantage of his position to extort bribes at least seven times. He bought a car and an expensive watch with public money, spent 140,000 yuan on his private business and loaned 50,000 yuan to others. The report did not specify what 'business' he ran in addition to his police job.

Li was also convicted of using violence against a suspect in May last year, when he lashed out after the latter refused to confess during interrogation.

Meanwhile, Chengdu Intermediate People's Court yesterday tried Zhang Yuren, formerly a director of the Sichuan Economic Restructuring Commission, also for accepting bribes.

The China News Service said that in 1993 Zhang had twice accepted shares from a Sichuan company in exchange for helping speed up the company's listing application.

The shares he allegedly accepted were worth more than two million yuan. Zhang is expected to be sentenced soon.