Under the rule of the Chinese Communist Party, the shocking level of corruption continues to be exposed. The latest news reveals that Li Jianping, a corrupt official in Inner Mongolia implicated in a case involving over 3 billion yuan, has had his appeal rejected and the death penalty upheld.
On August 27th, the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Higher People’s Court publicly pronounced the second-instance judgment on Li Jianping for charges of corruption, bribery, embezzlement of public funds, and collusion with organized crime, ruling to reject the appeal and uphold the death penalty, awaiting approval from the Supreme Court.
Li Jianping, born in May 1960 in Bazhou, Hebei Province, has never worked outside of Inner Mongolia. He has held positions such as member of the Party Committee and Deputy Director of the Water Department in Hohhot City, Chairman of Chunhua Water Company, Secretary of the Party Committee and Director of the Water Department in Hohhot City, and Secretary of the Party Working Committee in the Hohhot Economic and Technological Development Zone.
In September 2018, Li Jianping, aged 58, was placed under investigation and in August 2019, he was expelled from the Party and dismissed from public office, subsequently facing judicial proceedings.
From his investigation to his expulsion from the Party, Li Jianping, a high-ranking official, did not attract much attention from the public.
On February 27, 2021, the website of the CCP Central Commission for Discipline Inspection revealed that during Li Jianping’s tenure as Secretary of the Party Working Committee in the Hohhot Economic and Technological Development Zone, he treated his area of responsibility as his “personal fiefdom,” using subordinate enterprises as his “money bags” and “ATMs,” accepting bribes ranging from millions to billions, with a total amount involved exceeding 3 billion yuan, shocking the nation.
On September 27, 2022, the Xing’an League Intermediate People’s Court in Inner Mongolia publicly pronounced the judgment on Li Jianping’s case, declaring that his actions constituted crimes of corruption, bribery, embezzlement of public funds, and collusion with organized crime, sentenced to death with confiscation of all personal assets.
The court stated that Li Jianping embezzled over 1.437 billion yuan of state-owned assets, misappropriated over 1.055 billion yuan of public funds from state-owned companies, and accepted bribes totalling over 577 million yuan.
From 2016 to 2018, Li Jianping, exploiting his position as Secretary of the Party Working Committee in the Hohhot Economic and Technological Development Zone, collaborated with others to embezzle over 1.437 billion yuan of state-owned funds, of which over 289 million yuan remained unrecovered.
From 2009 to 2014, leveraging his roles as Chairman of Hohhot Chunhua Water Development Group Co., Ltd., and Secretary of the Party Working Committee in the Hohhot Economic and Technological Development Zone, Li Jianping provided assistance to others in securing construction contracts, receiving a total of over 577 million yuan in bribes.
From 2006 to 2016, Li Jianping either alone or in collusion with others, misappropriated over 1.055 billion yuan of public funds from state-owned companies, of which over 404 million yuan had not been returned before the case came to light.
Moreover, Li Jianping had a close and collusive relationship with Zhao Wenyuan, the organizer and leader of an organized crime group (who has already been sentenced), neglecting his duties and enabling illegal activities by the organized crime group led by Zhao Wenyuan in demolition and relocation projects, land acquisitions, and work arrangements.
Following the first-instance verdict, both Li Jianping and other defendants in the case filed appeals.
On August 17, 2023, the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Higher People’s Court conducted a second-instance trial for the case of Li Jianping’s corruption, bribery, embezzlement of public funds, and collusion with organized crime. Li Jianping made his final statement during the trial, with the court announcing that the judgment would be delivered on a later date.
After a year-long wait, today (August 27th), the court finally pronounced the judgment, rejecting the appeal and upholding the death penalty for Li Jianping.