China

HOHHOT, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- China on Tuesday executed Li Jianping, a former official in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, after convicting him of corruption, bribery, misappropriation of public funds, and collusion with a criminal syndicate.

The death sentence of Li, former secretary of the Party working committee of the Hohhot economic and technological development zone, was initially issued in September 2022 and upheld on appeal in August 2024.

Tuesday's execution followed the approval of the Supreme People's Court (SPC) and was carried out by an intermediate court in Inner Mongolia.

Li was convicted of amassing illicit wealth on a scale rarely seen among officials of his rank.

Despite holding relatively modest local government positions, he was found guilty of embezzling over 1.437 billion yuan (about 200 million U.S. dollars) of funds from state-owned enterprises, receiving gifts and money totaling more than 577 million yuan, and misappropriating over 1.055 billion yuan in public funds.

In addition, Li was convicted of enabling illegal operations by a criminal syndicate under his watch.

Li appealed the decision after the intermediate court sentenced him to death in 2022, with lifelong deprivation of political rights and confiscation of all assets, but the Higher People's Court of Inner Mongolia rejected his appeal in August.

Upon reviewing the case, the SPC ruled that Li's crimes were extremely severe, citing the exceptionally large amounts embezzled and received in bribes, the grave nature of the offenses, the widespread negative social impact and the immense harm to the state and public interests.

The SPC approved the decision of the Higher People's Court of Inner Mongolia to uphold the death penalty. Li was permitted to meet with his next of kin before the execution.