Former Henan official gets life for taking 310m yuan in bribes

Liu Mancang, a former senior official with Henan province's top legislative body, was sentenced to life in prison by a court in Jiangsu province on Tuesday for accepting bribes totaling more than 310 million yuan ($46.57 million).

The Suzhou Intermediate People's Court sentenced Liu, 70, to life imprisonment for bribery and 12 years in prison for using his influence to accept bribes. The court combined the sentences, ordering him to serve life imprisonment. It also ordered the confiscation of all his personal assets.

Liu was deprived of his political rights for life, and all his illegal gains and related proceeds will be confiscated and turned over to the State treasury, according to the court.

The court found that between 1997 and 2018, Liu took advantage of his positions in Henan, including serving as mayor of Shangqiu and vice-governor of the province, to seek benefits for government departments and individuals in project development, business operations and personnel promotions. In return, he accepted more than 146 million yuan in bribes.

From 2019 to 2024, after retiring from public office, Liu continued to leverage the influence of his former positions to help others in land management matters and accepted an additional 170 million yuan in bribes, the court said.

The court ruled that Liu's conduct constituted the crimes of bribery and using influence to accept bribes. Given the "particularly huge" amount of money involved and the "especially heavy" losses caused to the interests of the State and the people, the court said a severe punishment was warranted.

The court also cited several mitigating factors, including Liu's confession, his voluntary disclosure of bribery offenses that investigators had not yet uncovered, and his efforts to return illicit gains. It therefore imposed a lenient sentence in accordance with the law.

Public records show that Liu, a native of Henan, began his career in March 1977 and joined the Communist Party of China in June 1981. During his career, he held a number of senior positions in the province, including vice-governor and deputy head of the Standing Committee of the Henan Provincial People's Congress, the province's top legislative body.

Liu was placed under disciplinary and supervisory investigation in October 2024 and expelled from the Party in April 2025. He was indicted on bribery-related charges four months later. The court publicly heard the case on Dec 4, 2025, with more than 20 people, including national lawmakers and political advisers, attending the proceedings.