Society

Police suspended for shielding gangsters

By Chen Xin (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-06-25 06:49

CHONGQING - Two police officers in Southwest China's Chongqing municipality were accused of protecting underworld gangsters engaged in prostitution and drug offenses at the local Hilton Hotel, the Oriental Morning Post reported on Thursday.

Police arrest a number of sex workers last week at the Hilton Hotel in Chongqing. The hotel was ordered to suspend operations after two police offi cers were found to have provided protection for underworld activities in the hotel. [China News Service]

The officers were allegedly the latest members of the police to be involved in mafia activities since a massive crackdown on gangs in the city last year, which implicated 159 officials, including former deputy police chief Wen Qiang, who was sentenced to death in April.

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Both officers, whose names were not given, were from the public security bureau in Yuzhong district, the report said.

"The two were suspended from work," the paper cited a source close to the case as saying, adding that one of them had recently been promoted for his contribution to Chongqing's campaign to crack down on gangsters.

The local police declined to comment on the case, but admitted that some police officers were involved in illegal activities.

Police ordered the Chongqing Hilton Hotel to suspend operations on Sunday after members of staff were found to have colluded with gangsters to enable prostitution and drug-related activities to take place at the hotel.

In an operation on Saturday, the police detained 102 suspects, of whom 22 were arrested.

Among the detained, Peng Zhimin, a shareholder in the hotel, was accused of having a close relationship with gangsters and providing facilities for prostitution to take place, according to the report.

Peng, who is also a real estate developer and a former National People's Congress (NPC) deputy in Yuzhong district, was also suspected of the illegal possession of firearms and bribery, the report said.

"Peng thought that the crackdown on gangsters in Chongqing was over and took advantage of his identity as a NPC deputy, giving a green light to illegal activities," the paper quoted Zhou Jingping, a police officer who participated in investigating the case, as saying.

Ma Wei contributed to this story.