Two former vice mayors of booming east China cities were executed on Tuesday 19th July after they were convicted of corruption, China's Supreme People's Court (SPC) said.
Xu Maiyong, a former vice mayor of Hangzhou, in Zhejiang province, was convicted of bribery, embezzlement and abuse of power on 12th May.
Jiang Renjie, a former vice mayor of Suzhou, in Jiangsu province, was convicted of bribery in April 2008.
Both men were convicted of extracting bribes from real estate developers, according to China Daily.
Xu got land for realtors in exchange for kickbacks: according to China Daily, he received 145 million yuan (US$22.4 million) in bribes and embezzled more than 53 million yuan (US$8.2 million).
Similarly, Jiang received bribes through a company registered by a realtor that was actually under his son's control. His son borrow money from the real estate developer, who got the right to develop a piece of land in exchange. The realtor in question said that Jiang received an 80 million yuan (US$12.4 million) kickback.
Both Xu and Jiang appealed their convictions after their trials, however their appeals were rejected by the higher courts.
Both Xu and Jiang appealed their convictions after their trials, however their appeals were rejected by the higher courts.
The Chinese government has been fighting a wave of corruption in recent years, and no doubt the publication of the news of the execution is intended to send a message to other potentially corrupt officials.
But many analysts say that until political and judicial openness match that of the market in China, officials and civilians will continue to find ways to make money illegally. The real estate industry has a reputation for being particularly corrupt.
Sources: China Daily, Hindustan Times, Reuters
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