Top Chinese internet censor and anti-cult official pleads guilty to taking US$8m in bribes

Peng Bo, former deputy head of China’s cyberspace regulator and cult affairs office, was accused of using his position for personal gain

The 64-year-old pleaded guilty on Thursday, with sentencing to follow at a later date, Xinhua reported

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Peng Bo at the Wuxi Intermediate People’s Court in Jiangsu province on December 23. Photo: Weibo

Published: 7:00pm, 24 Dec 2021

A former top Chinese internet censor and anti-cult security official has pleaded guilty to corruption charges and accepting 54.64 million yuan (US$8.6 million) in bribes.

Peng Bo, 64, was arrested in August, five months after being placed under investigation by China’s anti-corruption watchdog.

He was accused of disloyalty to the Communist Party and using “his authority for personal gain” from 2006, to facilitate litigation settlements, online business expansion, and land transfer procedures, while receiving bribes in return.

The case was heard on Thursday at the Wuxi Intermediate People’s Court in Jiangsu province and sentencing will take place at a later date, according to Xinhua.

Peng Bo took up teaching at Peking University after he retired. Photo: Handout

Before he was placed under investigation by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection in March, Peng had been teaching new media at Peking University, a role he took up after retiring in 2018.

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