On May 7, 2026, Chinese state media reported that former State Councilors and Ministers of National Defense of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), Li Shangfu and Wei Fenghe, were both sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve on charges of bribery.
According to Xinhua news agency, the CCP Military Court announced the bribery case of former CCP Central Military Commission member and State Councilor Wei Fenghe on May 7. Wei Fenghe was convicted of bribery and sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve, with his personal assets being confiscated. After the two-year reprieve period expires, his sentence will be commuted to life imprisonment, during which he is not eligible for parole or sentence reduction.
On the same day, Li Shangfu, another former CCP Central Military Commission member and State Councilor, was found guilty of bribery and corruption; he also received the death penalty with a two-year reprieve. Like Wei Fenghe, Li Shangfu had his personal assets confiscated and will be subject to life imprisonment after the two-year reprieve period.
Li Shangfu, 68, previously served as Commander of the Xichang Satellite Launch Center, Deputy Minister of the General Equipment Department, and Minister of Equipment Development Department of the Central Military Commission, among other positions. After the CCP’s 20th National Congress in 2022, Li Shangfu became a member of the Central Military Commission and later took over as State Councilor and Minister of National Defense from Wei Fenghe in March 2023. Li Shangfu went “missing” in late July of the same year.
The fall of Li Shangfu was officially announced on August 31, 2023. A month later, his predecessor Wei Fenghe was also placed under investigation.
Wei Fenghe, 72, served as Commander of the Second Artillery Corps (predecessor of the Rocket Force) and Commander of the Rocket Force. After the CCP’s 19th National Congress in 2017, Wei Fenghe became a member of the Central Military Commission, State Councilor, and Minister of National Defense.
On June 27, 2024, both Li Shangfu and Wei Fenghe were expelled from the CCP and the military, and their cases were referred for review and prosecution.
Previously, there were reports implicating Li Shangfu and Wei Fenghe in a high-level corruption case involving the Rocket Force and military industry executives.
When the Xinhua news agency reported on the Li Shangfu and Wei Fenghe cases on June 27, 2024, it only vaguely mentioned corruption issues. Li Shangfu was suspected of bribery and corruption, while Wei Fenghe was accused of bribery. The report also mentioned their “collapse of faith” and “disloyalty.”
The report claimed that both individuals had caused “great damage” to “military construction” and the “image of senior leadership” and posed a “particularly huge harm.”
Commentator Zhong Yuan analyzed in the Epoch Times that Li Shangfu’s alleged bribery offenses stemmed from his continuous loyalty to Xi Jinping and senior military officials in exchange for promotions and financial gains. The practice of buying and selling official positions within the CCP military is still prevalent even after a decade of anti-corruption efforts. Yuan suggests Li Shangfu might have refrained from bribing Xi Jinping directly but likely engaged in bribery with other military commission members for career advancement and financial benefits.
Yuan also pointed out that while Li Shangfu was involved in both bribery and corruption, which should be more severe than Wei Fenghe’s bribery, the report did not mention his loyalty issues. Wei Fenghe, on the other hand, was only implicated in bribery, but the report added a note of “disloyalty.” The report only stated “disloyalty,” without using terms like “unfaithful” or “two-faced,” indicating a sensitive topic within high-level CCP discussions. Recent revelations by “Red Second-Generation” insiders have suggested that many officials within the military might be double-dealers waiting for an opportunity to bring down Xi Jinping, a taboo subject within the CCP hierarchy.
The article concludes that the CCP is once again targeting internal corruption to prevent military unrest from becoming a major issue, leading to a lack of genuine trust among military ranks. While Anti-corruption campaigns are ongoing, the real issue lies deeper than mere corruption.