Former Chinese justice minister expelled from Communist Party, accused of corruption

Fu Zhenghua was also dismissed from public office and his case has been transferred to state prosecutors
Anti-graft watchdog alleges he ‘traded power for personal gain and accepted huge amounts of bribes’

Xi Jinping's anti-corruption campaign

Phoebe Zhang

Published: 6:30am, 1 Apr 2022

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Former justice minister Fu Zhenghua has been expelled from the Communist Party and dismissed from public office, the anti-corruption watchdog said on Thursday.

Fu, 67, had been detained in September and placed under investigation for corruption amid a crackdown on senior law enforcement and judicial figures. The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection said Fu had lost his “party spirit and principles” and alleged he had colluded with Sun Lijun, the former vice-minister of public security who is awaiting trial on corruption charges.

The CCDI statement said Fu had paid lip service to party orders and edicts while indulging in a decadent lifestyle and engaging in superstitious activities.

It said Fu had “made insidious comments about the party’s major policies and directions” and “had for a long time made friends with a number of political liars, thus creating very bad influence”, without elaborating.

“For a long period of time, [Fu] violated the regulations regarding the possession and carrying of firearms … and [he] had no respect for the law,” the statement said.

The CCDI also accused Fu of taking advantage of his positions, saying he had “encroached on and occupied several government properties and cars for his own and his family’s use”.

“[Fu] was greedy and corrupt, traded power for personal gain and accepted huge amounts of bribes,” the statement said, adding that he had “completely abandoned his ideals and beliefs, was never truly loyal to the party and the people, and completely lost his party spirit and principles”.

As well as being expelled from the party, the watchdog ordered that Fu’s “illegal income” be confiscated and his case transferred to state prosecutors for trial.

It comes just months ahead of the twice-a-decade party congress, when a major leadership reshuffle is expected.

Fu was once a rising political star. He stepped down from the justice ministry in May 2020 and was appointed to the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, a key advisory body.

A native of northern Hebei province, he made his name in 2010 with a high-profile bust at Beijing’s exclusive Passion nightclub, months after taking over as the capital’s police chief. He was chosen in 2013 to lead the investigation into former security chief Zhou Yongkang, who was jailed for life in 2015 for corruption and abuse of power.

Fu’s detention came weeks after close ally Peng Bo, who had been the country’s top internet censor, was accused by the CCDI of disloyalty to the party. Peng, who was deputy chief of the Cyberspace Administration of China, pleaded guilty in December to corruption charges and accepting bribes but has yet to be sentenced. Peng and Fu crossed paths when the latter headed the 610 Office – the party’s top security agency investigating and prosecuting cult religions. Peng was his deputy.

It comes after the anti-corruption watchdog on Tuesday said Hao Chunrong, vice-governor of the northeastern province of Liaoning, was being investigated for serious violations of discipline and law. Days earlier, former railway minister Sheng Guangzu was also accused of serious disciplinary violations.

Graft-busters also said early this month they were investigating former Liaoning police chief Wang Dawei, who was also vice-governor and is the province’s third police chief to be accused of corruption.