A Chinese court on Monday sentenced former justice minister Tang Yijun to life in prison after finding him guilty of accepting nearly $20 million in bribes over more than a decade.
Tang, 64, served as China’s justice minister from 2020 to 2023 and previously held roles including governor of Liaoning province and CCP chief of Ningbo.
According to the Xiamen Intermediate People’s Court, Tang exploited “the advantages associated with the positions he successively held” between 2006 and 2022 to benefit individuals and companies. In return for bribes, he assisted with initial public offerings, bank loans, land acquisitions, and other matters, receiving a total of 137 million yuan ($19.7 million).
The court described the amount of bribes as “particularly high,” causing “extremely serious damage to the interests of the state and the people.” Tang’s confession, remorse, guilty plea, and cooperation were considered as mitigating factors.
Tang is the second former justice minister convicted of corruption in recent years, after Fu Zhenghua, who received a death sentence with a two-year reprieve in 2022, later commuted to life imprisonment. Authorities are also investigating China’s top general Zhang Youxia for corruption, marking one of the highest-profile military probes in decades.
