THE wife of former Chinese political heavyweight Bo Xilai has had her suspended death sentence for murdering a British businessman commuted to life imprisonment.

    Gu Kailai, 57, was condemned to death with a two-year reprieve in 2012 for murdering British businessman Neil Heywood, who had been close to the family.

    The Yancheng Prison, the prison where Gu is serving her term, applied last year for her penalty to be reduced. The Higher People’s Court of Beijing said in a statement dated Friday that it had commuted her punishment to life in jail, according to statements posted on the website of China’s Supreme People’s Court.

    The prison said Gu “obeyed discipline,” qualified in “ideological, cultural and technological studies” and “completed labor tasks in a timely manner.”

    The Beijing court said Gu was “eligible for the legal conditions for a commutation” since she “did not commit any crimes” while incarcerated.

    The suspended death sentence is typically commuted to life in prison in China, although the period of time served varies.

    The law states that a death sentence for murder cannot be commuted to less than 20 years in jail, but legal experts say there have been cases where the courts have ordered shorter sentences.

    Bo, 66, a former member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Chongqing’s former Party chief, was sentenced to life in prison for bribery, embezzlement and abuse of power in 2013.

    Bo’s top aide Wang Lijun — who fled to a U.S. consulate — was imprisoned for 15 years in 2012 for defection and covering up Gu’s killing of Heywood, among other offenses.

    Former Railway Minister Liu Zhijun, who was given a suspended death penalty in 2013 for taking bribes over 64.6 million yuan (US$10 million) in a separate corruption scandal, also had his sentence commuted, the Beijing court said.

    The prison where Liu is serving his terms said Liu realized his crimes and took part actively in labor work and group activities during reprieve, by which he was awarded the title of model prisoner in 2014. An article written by Liu on introspection for committing crimes won a second prize, the prison said.

    From 1986 to 2011, Liu took advantage of his positions as official of local railway authorities as well as the Ministry of Railways, and helped 11 people, Shao Liping and Ding Yuxin included, win promotions, project contracts, and cargo transportation contracts.

    He accepted 64.6 million yuan in bribes from them during this period.

    (SD-Agencies)