China yesterday executed seven officials for their involvement in the 25 billion yuan (HK$23.5 billion) Yuan Hua smuggling scandal, state media reported.
They were among the 11 sentenced to death by Fujian courts last November and were executed in Xiamen, Fuzhou and Quanzhou immediately after courts rejected their appeals yesterday.
The courts were still considering the appeals of four senior cadres - former Xiamen Customs chief Yang Qianxiang, former vice-director of Fujian Public Security Bureau Zhang Rushun, former Xiamen vice-mayor Lan Fu, and a division head of the Dongdu branch of Xiamen Customs Fang Kuanrong. The four appealing their death sentences have provided police with extra information that might lead to the arrest of other people, Xinhua reported.
The former president of the Xiamen branch of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Ye Jichen, and a mid-ranking Xiamen Customs official, Wu Yubo, were among the seven executed yesterday.
The others were Wang Jinting, Jie Peigong, Huang Shanying, Zhuang Mingtian and Li Shizhuan. They were accused of evading tax ranging from 578,000 to 96.56 million yuan.
Eighty-four people were sentenced during the first ruling over the scandal in November, including 11 who were given the death penalty, three who were given suspended death sentences and 15 who were sentenced to life imprisonment.