Su Rong under criminal investigation for bribery

BEIJING - Su Rong, former vice chairman of the country's top political advisory body, is being investigated by the Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP) over allegations of accepting bribes, the SPP announced Tuesday.

The SPP has taken "coercive measures" against Su, who has already been expelled from the Communist Party of China (CPC) and dismissed from public office following an internal investigation.

Su Rong had been one of the 23 vice-chairmen of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference until authorities began an investigation.

He abused his power over personnel appointments and the operation of unidentified companies and took "an enormous amount of bribes", said the top anti-graft watchdog.

"As a senior party official, Su Rong disregarded the party's political rules ... wantonly sold ranks and titles, led the official ranks astray and damaged the atmosphere in society," the statement said.

His influence was "abominable" and he has been officially stripped of his title and expelled from the party, it said.

Details of Su's case have been handed to judicial authorities, it said, and he will face prosecution in court.

Local media has said the probe into Su was possibly linked to his time in Jiangxi, and that Su's wife took bribes related to land deals and construction projects. It was not possible to reach Su or his family for comment.

China's campaign against deep-rooted official corruption has intensified since the appointment of President Xi Jinping in 2013, with several senior government figures and state company executives already in detention.