Former Chinese anti-graft official Li Gang gets 15 years for massive bribery

Li Gang, once a senior inspector in China’s anti-corruption apparatus, has been sentenced to 15 years for taking over 102 million yuan in bribes — a punishment far lighter than past cases in which top officials were given the death penalty.

China has sentenced Li Gang, a former senior anti-corruption inspector within the Communist Party, to 15 years in prison for accepting more than 102 million yuan (around 14.4 million USD) in bribes. The Wuhan court also imposed a 6-million-yuan fine. According to the verdict, Li's sentence was reduced because he cooperated with investigators, provided information that led to the discovery of other corruption cases, admitted guilt, expressed remorse, and returned much of the illicit money.

The case has drawn attention not only because Li once served at the heart of China’s anti-graft apparatus, but also because it illustrates how sentencing practices have shifted in recent years. While Li received a lengthy prison term, earlier high-profile corruption scandals often resulted in far harsher punishments — including the death penalty.

In the 2000s and 2010s, several senior officials were executed for large-scale bribery, among them Cheng Kejie, a former vice-chairman of the National People’s Congress Standing Committee, who was put to death after being convicted of accepting more than 41 million yuan. Zheng Xiaoyu, the former head of China’s Food and Drug Administration, was executed in 2007 after being found guilty of corruption and approving unsafe medicines in exchange for bribes. More recently, in 2021, Lai Xiaomin, the former chairman of a major state-owned financial conglomerate, was sentenced to death without reprieve for amassing what authorities described as “extremely large” bribes.

Even in the last few years, Chinese courts have occasionally handed down death sentences to officials involved in exceptionally severe corruption cases, underscoring the government’s continuing zero-tolerance stance. Against this backdrop, Li Gang’s sentence reflects a more moderate approach — shaped largely by his cooperation — yet still signals the leadership’s ongoing commitment to prosecuting wrongdoing within its own ranks.

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