On June 30th, Li Aiqing, the former party secretary of the Beijing Shouchuang Group and known as the “top corrupt official of Beijing state-owned enterprises” in the Chinese Communist Party, was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve for accepting bribes totaling more than 200 million Chinese yuan. Official sources had previously accused him of engaging in “power-for-sex transactions,” with reports from mainland Chinese media disclosing instances of him engaging in such transactions with male individuals, including “several second-tier male celebrities and top influencers.”
The Beijing High Court announced on June 30th that Li Aiqing, the former party secretary and chairman of the Beijing Shouchuang Group, was found guilty of bribery and abuse of power by state-owned company employees, among other charges. He was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve and his personal assets were confiscated.
Public records show that Li Aiqing, born in September 1959, had worked in the Beijing municipal finance system for nearly 18 years, holding various positions including director of the industrial enterprise financial management department, chief accountant, and deputy director of the finance bureau. In January 2000, he joined the city government and subsequently served as deputy secretary-general, deputy director of the city government office, and deputy party secretary. In March 2002, Li Aiqing was appointed as the chairman of the Beijing State-Owned Assets Management Co., Ltd., where he worked for 14 years. In June 2016, he was transferred to the role of party secretary and chairman of the Shouchuang Group until he stepped down in April 2020.
Li Aiqing was placed under investigation in July 2021. In March 2022, he was expelled from the Party and dismissed from public office, with official reports citing his involvement in power-for-sex transactions.
On July 1st, Caixin reported that the court did not disclose the exact amount involved in Li Aiqing’s case, but a previous propaganda film by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection revealed that his bribery and corruption amounted to over two billion yuan. Following his downfall, his son, brother, nephew, and driver were also implicated. This case represents the largest bribery amount uncovered since the reform of the Communist Party’s supervision system in Beijing.
Various mainland Chinese media outlets have dubbed Li Aiqing as the “top corrupt official of Beijing state-owned enterprises.”
According to a report on Sina.com on July 1st, citing information from the public account “Anyuandi,” the power-for-sex transactions involving the “top corrupt official of Beijing state-owned enterprises” were of a homosexual nature. “Three years ago, several second-tier male celebrities and top influencers were exposed to have intimate relationships with Li Aiqing. This shocking revelation was truly eye-opening.”
The report mentioned that a certain enterprise’s responsible person, Ma, had been deeply involved in the Li family’s affairs for over a decade, pledging financial resources exceeding 28 million yuan, forming a “butler-style service” relationship. The unusual same-sex relationship between Li Aiqing and Ma went beyond traditional bribery boundaries, creating a comprehensive entanglement of interests.