Former Shanxi official receives suspended sentence on appeal

A death sentence for a former official from Shanxi province was suspended on Friday after the provincial high people's court heard an appeal.

Zhang Zhongsheng, the former vice-mayor of Lyuliang, Shanxi, was convicted of accepting 1.04 billion yuan ($160 million) in bribes and sentenced to death by the provincial Linfen Intermediate People's Court in 2018.

All his personal assets were confiscated at the same time, while properties he obtained from the bribery and those with unknown origin were also turned over the State treasury, the intermediate court said.

According to the court, from 1997 to 2013, Zhang took advantage of various positions, including head of Zhongyang county and vice-mayor of Lyuliang, to help individuals and departments get profits, and received cash and property worth 1.04 billion yuan in return.

He was also found with a huge portfolio of properties with unknown origin purchased with resources far greater than his regular income, it added.

Considering the amount of his bribes was enormous and the situation of his offense was serious, the court sentenced him to death.

Later, Zhang appealed to the Shanxi High People's Court.

The high court upheld the conviction when announcing the latest ruling on Friday, but it changed Zhang's death penalty to death with a two-year reprieve.

Under Chinese law, a suspended death sentence means the convicted will not be executed, and their sentence can be reduced to life imprisonment if they have no new crimes during the two-year probation. In general, their sentence will be further cut if they perform better in prison.

But the high court clarified in the ruling Zhang could not be given parole or further commutation after his suspended death sentence is reduced to life imprisonment.

Yang Hong, vice-president of the high court, said Zhang's sentence was changed because he provided key clues to another provincial-level official's bribery which proved true during the appeal case hearing.

"His behavior should be identified as a significant contribution in line with the Chinese law, and his family members also coordinated with our work in recovering his illicit gains," Yang said, adding such situations can lead to more lenient punishment under the law.