FORMER Shenzhen Vice Mayor Liang Daoxing has been sentenced to 10 years in jail for taking the equivalent of US$543,000 in bribes.

    Zhaoqing Intermediate People’s Court in northern Guangdong also ordered a confiscation of 1 million yuan from Liang Monday.

    Liang, 63, who was vice mayor of Shenzhen from 2002 to early 2009, took bribes in return for seeking benefits for those bribing him, according to the court. Liang abused his power to promote the bribers’ interests and demanded others pay for his daughter’s apartment and for his overseas trips when he served as Party chief of Nanshan District.

    His last post was director of the Executive Office of the 26th Shenzhen Summer Universiade, set up in 2009, after he resigned from his post as vice mayor in February the same year.

    When he was Party chief of Nanshan District, Liang promoted Ye Qian, an engineer with Nanyou Holdings Co., to head of Nanshan Urban Construction and Development Co. after he took HK$680,000 from Ye between 1998 and 1999.

    Liang also recommended that Jiang Hanping, head of Nanshan District’s public health bureau, become deputy chief of Shenzhen’s family planning commission after taking 130,000 yuan from Jiang in 1998. In 2004, Jiang gave 500,000 yuan to Liang for his recommendation of Jiang for head of Shenzhen’s public health bureau.

    The court said Liang also took 110,000 yuan in bribes from the ex-chairman of Shennan Petroleum Group Corp., surnamed Wang. Liang borrowed 50,000 yuan from Wang to buy an apartment and another US$5,000 for his daughter’s trip overseas.

    A company manager surnamed Zhang gave him 428,510 yuan and HK$1.1 million for the respective approvals of a factory relocation and the establishment of Shenzhen Brain Disease Hospital.

    In May 2007, Liang called Zhang and asked him to purchase an apartment for his daughter’s marriage. Liang paid 600,000 yuan for an apartment, but demanded a receipt for 1.02 million yuan, the apartment’s full price. Zhang paid the other 420,000 yuan. Shortly afterwards, Liang said he had no money to decorate the apartment. Zhang then gave HK$600,000 to Liang.

    The court also said Liang took HK$500,000 from Zhang to pay for his trips overseas.

    Liang pleaded guilty, but asked the court for leniency on the grounds that he had worked in Shenzhen for more than 40 years. (Han Ximin)