A Sichuan court has jailed a man for 18 months for sending mainland stock regulator Laura Cha Shih May-lung a threatening letter laced with a powder apparently meant to look like anthrax spores.
The People's Criminal Court in Guanghan sentenced He Zhenyu, 24, a pharmaceuticals salesman, late last month, according to He's lawyer.
Angry over his stock market losses, He sent a letter to the vice-chairwoman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) on October 23 - during the anthrax scare in the United States.
Ye Kaike, He's lawyer, said his client had lost about 12,000 yuan (HK$11,200) on the market and blamed the market regulator for the financial setback.
'He was very angry at the CSRC,' the lawyer said. 'He believed the market regulators were responsible.'
Five people died in more than 20 confirmed anthrax attacks in the US, beginning shortly after the September 11 terror attacks. The US cases, which remain unsolved, were mostly linked to letters containing spores of the rare disease. The attacks triggered a number of apparently unrelated hoax letters in other parts of the world, including the mainland.
The CSRC has been under fire for a string of irregularities by listed companies. Investors have been angered by Beijing's plans to sell off state shares, a proposal that has sent stock prices tumbling.
