(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-01-15 19:52

A prominent Beijing official on Tuesday was sentenced to death for murder and corruption, according to a ruling by the No.1 Intermediate People's Court of Beijing.

Xu Zhiyuan, a former vice chairman of an advisory body to the legislature of Beijing's Fangshan District, was found guilty of ordering the murder of his mistress.

The court heard Xu, 55, embarked on an affair with a female colleague surnamed Chen in 1999 but later "harbored resentment" towards her following regular arguments about "trivialities".

Xu paid his driver Liu Xiaoming 100,000 yuan (US$13,699) to kill Chen. On January 27, 2006, the third day of the Spring Festival, the Chinese lunar new year, when most Chinese were still celebrating, Liu lured Chen to an office of his own business, a private paint factory located in the suburbs of Beijing. Liu strangled the woman to death and then set fire to her body.

Xu was also convicted for abusing his authority and taking bribes worth about 600,000 yuan (US$82,192) on three occasions. He was given a jail term of 13 years for this crime alone.

Xu's driver Liu was also sentenced to death. The court did not say whether the pair were planning to appeal.