Former SOE executive sentenced to 12 years in jail for corruption

Zhou Zheng, former deputy general manager of COFCO Corporation, a leading state-owned food trader, was sentenced to 12 years in prison on charges of bribery, embezzlement, and abuse of power by state-owned enterprise personnel.

Zhou was also fined 700,000 yuan (US$97,387), and all of his illicit gains shall be confiscated, according to a verdict issued by a court in Yuncheng, north China's Shanxi Province, on Tuesday.

The court found that between 1998 and 2023, Zhou exploited his various positions to assist others in matters such as project contracting, employment, and job promotions, in exchange for bribes totaling over 6.05 million yuan.

He also took undue advantage of his positions to embezzle public funds and illegally take possession of public properties totaling 2.41 million yuan between 2003 and 2021. From 2013 to 2014, he misused his power to push forward certain projects in violation of rules, resulting in a loss of over 101 million yuan in state-owned assets, according to the verdict.

The court noted that Zhou was cooperative throughout the investigation and returned all his illegal gains, factors that were taken into account when determining his sentence.