Former senior political advisor of Jilin sentenced to 9 years in prison for graft

JINAN, April 30 (Xinhua) -- Zhang Xiaopei, former vice chairman of the Jilin Provincial Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, was on Tuesday sentenced to nine years in prison for accepting bribes.

The verdict was issued by the Intermediate People's Court of Heze City in Shandong Province, east China.

The court found that between 2004 and 2022, Zhang took advantage of his various positions in Jilin to assist individuals and organizations in such matters as project contracting, land-use approvals and job promotions. In return, Zhang accepted money and valuables worth a total of 69.34 million yuan (about 9.76 million U.S. dollars), either directly or through his relatives.

Per the verdict, the defendant was also fined 3 million yuan and had his illicit gains confiscated to be turned over to the national treasury.

In light of the fact that Zhang turned himself in and remained cooperative during the proceedings, he was granted leniency by the court.