Retired official 'conned students'

A retired Ministry of Education official went on trial in Beijing on Tuesday over allegations he helped swindle students hoping to study in the United States.

Feng Shulin stands accused along with a retired professor and another couple of making 1.5 million yuan ($236,280) by posing as agents for a fake university.

All four faced judges at Haidian District People's Court.

According to prosecutors, 74-year-old Feng enlisted the help of his accomplices to set up a consulting company in 2009 that advertised it was authorized to recruit students for the Nation University of USA, which does not exist.

It was not revealed how many clients had paid to use the company's services. However, the court heard that Feng's share of the profits came to more than 180,000 yuan.

Gong Senlin, a 62-year-old retired professor from Heilongjiang province, and one of Feng's co-defendants, told the court he had asked a friend called Ding, a professor specializing in finance at a Beijing's university, to give lessons at the company's base.

However, he called police after finding the so-called base was just a small company without enrollment authorization.

Prosecutors have recommended a sentence of at least three years for Feng, who was charged with fraud, and sentences of at least five years for his accomplices, who each face one count of illegal operation of a company.

It was not explained why the defendants face different charges.

A verdict is pending.