SHENYANG -- A Chinese court has sentenced a former city mayor in northeast China's Liaoning Province to eight years in prison on embezzlement charges.

The Dandong Intermediate People's Court heard that Wang Yachen, 75, eyed a shopping mall project in Fuxin city developed by Gao Wenhua, a local businessman, in 2002.

Wang was the mayor of Fuxin in 1987. Later he became Party secretary of the city and director of the Standing Committee of the municipal people's congress. He retired in 1998.

The court heard that Wang made use of his clout and joined Gao's company as a consultant. Later, he managed to become the commander-in-chief of the company's shopping mall project, and the company's financial executive officer.

The court found that Wang had illegally transferred assets worth of 4.77 million yuan (about US$636,000) from Gao's company to another company registered under his son's name.

Wang has forged documents and falsely reported the registered assets, the court said.