DURING a Wednesday hearing in Yantian People’s Court, a former traffic policeman admitted to taking 41,000 yuan (US$6,605) in bribes, but denied abusing his authority because he shared the money with others.

    The traffic policeman, identified as Zhu, faced accusations of receiving bribes during 2013 and 2014 in exchange for not ticketing traffic violators.

    Zhu received a call to deal with a traffic accident in Long-hua New Area around 9 p.m. on March 24 last year. A sedan had run over the barrier in the middle of Minzhi Boulevard before knocking down a tree.

    It was suspected that the driver and passenger had switched seats, and one of the people in the vehicle was drunk. Instead of investigating, Zhu let the two people go and failed to report the accident.

    Zhu was later found to have received 11,000 yuan for “being lenient.”

    During the trial, Zhu, formerly of the Traffic Police Brigade of Longhua New Area, admitted that he had taken bribes in the last two years, but denied that he had misused his authority because he shared the bribes with other associated policemen and tow-truck personnel.

    Zhu’s lawyer said that Zhu did not ask for the money on his own initiative and he turned himself in for investigation.

    The prosecutors said that Zhu admitted his misbehavior only after the investigation began.

    (Zhang Qian)