Chinese Regime Mulls Punishment for Dark Crimes of Two Officials

The Chinese regime is thinking over former Politburo member Bo Xilai’s crimes and punishment, including accusations of live organ harvesting, and is also considering disciplinary action against Zhou Yongkang, the head of China’s security forces, according to a source.

A source in Beijing familiar with the matter told New Epoch Weekly, an affiliate of The Epoch Times, that after working for several months, an investigation team from the Chinese regime’s Central Discipline Inspection Commission (CDIC), consisting of more than 300 people, concluded that Bo Xilai committed four serious crimes: blocking investigation of his wife Gu Kailai’s homicide case, abusing power for financial gain, involvement in other death cases, and involvement in the harvesting of organs of political prisoners. 

However, Bo will only be prosecuted for harboring his wife’s homicide and for economic crimes, and he will stand trial in two weeks, the source said.

On Sept. 28, state media Xinhua reported that Bo’s family “accepted a huge amount of money and property from others,” that Bo “abused his power,” covered up for his wife’s murder, “received huge bribes personally,” and “had or maintained improper sexual relationships with a number of women.” He was also guilty of “erroneous decisions in the promotion of personnel.”

Among these allegations, only harboring criminals and accepting bribes will be tried in a court. Matters of “organizational discipline,” bad decisions in promoting personnel, and improper sexual relations count as “mistakes” rather than crimes.

The Xinhua report shared many of the same details as the information shared by New Epoch Weekly’s Beijing source.

Sentencing Bo

Beijing University Law Professor He Weifang and Beijing lawyer Mo Shaoping said in an interview with Voice of America that accepting bribes of over 10 million yuan (US$1.58 million) can carry a sentence of death with reprieve, so it is possible that Bo will receive that punishment. 

Different reports exist as to how much money Bo’s family has accumulated through corruption. 

Japan’s Asahi Shimbun reported that in April this year, after Gu was arrested in connection with the murder of Heywood, suspicions surfaced that she had illegally transferred US$6 billion overseas.  

Deutsche Welle also reported that Bo was being investigated by a CDIC team of over 300 and was found to have received 100 million yuan (US$15.81 million) through corruption in Liaoning Province alone. 

However, the Beijing source said that the CDIC has evidence of Bo receiving two billion yuan (US$316 million) through corruption, but they may not prosecute him on this figure. 

The amount of bribe taking the regime will charge Bo with is the key to Bo’s sentence, the Beijing source said. 

According to the allegations listed by Xinhua, Bo will most likely not receive a heavy sentence, and will get 15 to 20 years, the source said.

‘Other Crimes’

Xinhua also said that the investigation uncovered evidence suggesting Bo’s involvement in “other crimes.” 

Those “other crimes” refer to live organ harvesting from Falun Gong practitioners, the Beijing source said, and it is a highly sensitive issue.

The regime may not dare to pursue charges of live organ harvesting against Bo, as that would “cause great unrest in the country, and completely shake the legitimacy of the ruling party,” the source added.

Zhou Yongkang

How to deal with Bo’s powerful supporter, Zhou Yongkang, is also on the table again, according to the source. 

Zhou is the head of the Political and Legislative Affairs Committee, a powerful Party agency that controls nearly all law enforcement bodies in China, including the police, armed police, courts, and procuratorate. Zhou is due to retire from the Politburo Standing Committee at the 18th party congress.

According to Sound of Hope Radio commentator Lang Shu, live organ harvesting from Falun Gong practitioners is systemic in China and is overseen by the PLAC, which Zhou oversees. 

Party leaders, including Hu, were said to have previously forgone punishing Zhou for protecting Bo Xilai, but this thinking changed recently, the source said. 

Because Zhou had a hand in stirring up the recent anti-Japanese protests, the largest in 50 years, which sprung up in over 100 Chinese cities on Sept. 18, Hu Jintao, Wen Jiabao, the premier, and Xi Jinping, China’s next presumptive leader, want to take action against Zhou, the source said. 

“Hu, Premier Wen Jiabao, and Xi are investigating whether Zhou Yongkang has been behind the protests. If he indeed was, the consensus in the Party that Zhou will step down smoothly will be changed,” the source said, meaning that Zhou could face some form of discipline depending on the outcome of the investigation.  

Editor’s Note: When Chongqing’s former top cop, Wang Lijun, fled for his life to the U.S. Consulate in Chengdu on Feb. 6, he set in motion a political storm that has not subsided. The battle behind the scenes turns on what stance officials take toward the persecution of Falun Gong. The faction with bloody hands—the officials former CCP head Jiang Zemin promoted in order to carry out the persecution—is seeking to avoid accountability for their crimes and to continue the campaign. Other officials are refusing to participate in the persecution any longer. Events present a clear choice to the officials and citizens of China, as well as people around the world: either support or oppose the persecution of Falun Gong. History will record the choice each person makes.

Read the original Chinese article.

[email protected]

The Epoch Times publishes in 35 countries and in 19 languages. Subscribe to our e-newsletter.