Underage sex official is sacked

A Sichuan official who admitted paying for sex with a virgin but who escaped jail time after insisting he did not know she was also underage has been stripped off his Party and government posts, local sources said on Friday.

A story published on the official Yibin News Net (www.ybxww.com) said Lu Lumin, a division chief of the local taxation bureau in the earthquake-plagued province, was "immediately sacked" last Sunday after news of the scandal broke.

The online story called on all local officials to "learn from the lesson and strengthen the construction of virtues". Lu, 47, was earlier fined 5,000 yuan (US$730) after insisting he did not know the age of the girl. He had been facing charges of child rape.