Ex-manager of coal company gets suspended death sentence

An intermediate court in Heilongjiang province has sentenced the former manager of a State-owned coal mining company to death with a two-year reprieve for accepting bribes totaling 306.8 million yuan ($45 million) over six years.

According to the verdict, which was issued on Friday, Yu Tieyiwas guilty of accepting bribes in exchange for handing out bloated procurement contracts between 2005 and 2011, when he was in charge of supplies at Heilongjiang Longmay Mining Holding Group.

The verdict said the total amount of the bribes Yu accepted was "huge", adding that the State suffered "a great loss", both of which warrant the most severe penalty: a death sentence with no reprieve.

However, the court said, it would show leniency because Yu behaved well during the investigation, reported the crimes of his accomplice and returned most of the bribes.

The court said Yu's illegal gains and all his personal assets would be confiscated. Yu was also deprived of the chance to have his prison terms reduced.

A sentence of death with a two-year reprieve often results in life in prison, as long as the convict does not commit new offenses in the two years.

Yu has decided not to appeal the ruling, the sources said.

China launched an anti-graft campaign in 2013 to crack down on misconduct by government officials. The campaign has seen some of the highest ranking officials arrested and sentenced.