GUANGDONG Provincial Higher People’s Court upheld a 13-year jail sentence for Ji Zhen, former vice head of Nanshan District Government, for taking 6.7 million yuan (US$968,271) and US$10,000 in bribes and embezzling public funds, sznews.com reported.

At the trial at Shenzhen Intermediate People’s Court in December, Ji was convicted of abusing his power to help enterprises like Coolpad gain profits in exchange for bribes. Ji also embezzled State research funds totaling 685,000 yuan after taking charge of State and provincial research projects between 2012 and 2015. Ji was fined 1.5 million yuan.

According to the report, Ji, who was born in 1973 and holds a doctoral degree, was taken into custody May 9, 2016, and arrested two weeks later.

Ji had taken US$10,000 from the vice chairman of Coolpad Group, surnamed Jiang, during the Spring Festival in 2013 for helping Coolpad’s fully funded subsidiary, Yulong Computer Telecommunication S&T Co. Ltd., apply for subsidies and awards.

The Yulong company received 3 million yuan in subsidies for settling in Nanshan, 4 million yuan in subsides for setting up a research laboratory, and 15 government-subsidized apartments as well as other subsidies for 150 apartments.

A police investigation also showed that Ji had charged Shenzhen Huade Innovation Technologies Co. Ltd. 600,000 yuan in December 2013 after helping Huade’s controlling company, Oukelan Technologies, receive 2 million yuan in research subsidies from the district government. Ji used the money to purchase an apartment.

Ji used the same tactics to take 1 million yuan in bribes in January 2014 after helping Jiangbolong Electronic Co. receive 2 million yuan in subsidies.

Between 2015 and 2016, Ji helped Shenzhen Dongfang Boya Technologies Co., an online gaming company, apply for land use rights at Liuxiandong Strategic and Emerging Industry Base in Xili. In October 2015, Ji borrowed 4 million yuan from a Boya manager. Ji then invested some of the money in the stock market. (Han Ximin)