Chinese official who shot two bosses ‘was facing investigation’
Anti-graft agency also confirms it was investigating former civil affairs minister and deputy
A Sichuan official who shot two of his supervisors before killing himself last week was about to be investigated by graft-busters before he stormed a meeting fired the rounds, a CCDI official said on Monday.
Chen Zhongshu, the land and resources bureau chief of the resources-rich city of Panzhihua, fired at the city’s party chief and mayor during a meeting on Wednesday.
Zhu Guoxian, propaganda chief of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, said yesterday that Panzhihua’s graft watchdog had planned to launch an investigation into Chen after getting permission from the city’s party committee, confirming a report by the South China Morning Post last week, which cited a source saying Chen had become an investigation target before the shooting.
A number of mainland officials have killed themselves to escape graft probes in recent years, according to mainland media reports, but it is the first time an official was confirmed to have shot others ahead of an imminent probe.
According to Shanghai-based news outlet Thepaper.cn, Chen rushed into the meeting room and fired at party chief Zhang Yan and mayor Li Jianqin before fleeing the scene.
The victims sustained minor wounds, and Chen was later found dead in the hotel building where the meeting was being held.
