China Awards Death Penalty To Former Nanjing Official, Convicted Of Taking Bribes Worth Nearly ₹2,800 Crore Over 30 Years

A court in eastern China has sentenced former Nanjing city official Yang Youlin to death after convicting him of accepting bribes worth more than 2.2 billion yuan (around Rs 2,800 crore) over three decades.

The 69-year-old was also found guilty of embezzlement, abuse of power and money laundering. According to Chinese state media, the case is one of the country's biggest corruption scandals in recent years.

Misused Public Office

Yang served in several important government positions in Nanjing between 1993 and 2023. During this period, he allegedly used his authority to help companies and individuals win engineering contracts, secure land transfers and obtain financing.

In return, he accepted huge amounts of cash and expensive gifts. Investigators said he repeatedly misused his public office for personal financial gain.

Linked to Xi's Anti-Graft Campaign

Yang's case is part of President Xi Jinping's long-running anti-corruption campaign, which has targeted senior government officials, military leaders, bankers and executives across China.

The campaign has led to investigations and punishments for thousands of officials. While the Chinese government says the drive is aimed at cleaning up corruption, critics claim it has also been used to remove political opponents.

Court Rejects Leniency

The Changzhou court described Yang's crimes as "extremely serious" and said they caused "exceptionally heavy losses" to the interests of the state and the public.

Although Yang pleaded guilty, admitted his crimes and expressed regret during the trial, the court ruled that the scale of his offences was too severe to justify a lighter punishment. It added that his cooperation with investigators was not enough to reduce his sentence.

Death Sentences Remain Rare

China rarely imposes the death penalty in financial crime cases, but courts may award the punishment when corruption involves exceptionally large sums.

In 2021, former finance executive Lai Xiaomin was executed after accepting bribes worth around Rs 2,300 crore. In 2024, former Inner Mongolia official Li Jianping was also executed after being convicted of embezzlement and bribery involving more than Rs 3,800 crore.

Many corruption cases in China result in life imprisonment or suspended death sentences that are later commuted. However, the court said Yang's offences were so serious that the death penalty was the appropriate punishment, despite his confession and remorse.