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| Chinese Official Linked to a Murder Scandal Is Convicted | Chinese Official Linked to a Murder Scandal Is Convicted |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| BEIJING — Chinese court officials have found Wang Lijun, a former police chief, guilty of four criminal charges after he fled to a United States Consulate last February and told diplomats there that the wife of a senior politician had murdered a British businessman, according to a report on Monday by Xinhua, the state news agency. | BEIJING — Chinese court officials have found Wang Lijun, a former police chief, guilty of four criminal charges after he fled to a United States Consulate last February and told diplomats there that the wife of a senior politician had murdered a British businessman, according to a report on Monday by Xinhua, the state news agency. |
| Mr. Wang, 52, originally from Inner Mongolia, was found guilty of defection, abuse of power, taking bribes and bending the law for personal gain, the report said. The People’s Intermediate Court in Chengdu, where the trial took place last week, sentenced Mr. Wang to 15 years in prison. | Mr. Wang, 52, originally from Inner Mongolia, was found guilty of defection, abuse of power, taking bribes and bending the law for personal gain, the report said. The People’s Intermediate Court in Chengdu, where the trial took place last week, sentenced Mr. Wang to 15 years in prison. |
| Verdicts in Chinese criminal cases, especially those with a political dimension, are often predetermined. Mr. Wang’s sentence was relatively lenient; court officials had made the argument last week that mitigating factors should be taken into account when determining the verdict and punishment. | Verdicts in Chinese criminal cases, especially those with a political dimension, are often predetermined. Mr. Wang’s sentence was relatively lenient; court officials had made the argument last week that mitigating factors should be taken into account when determining the verdict and punishment. |
| In February, Mr. Wang spent nearly 36 hours at the consulate in Chengdu, capital of the southwestern province of Sichuan, and set off one of the biggest political scandals here in a generation. He told diplomats that Gu Kailai, the wife of Bo Xilai, a Communist Party leader, had poisoned the Briton, Neil Heywood, in November. | |
| After an overnight stay, Mr. Wang left the consulate in the custody of state security officers and presumably told investigators, too, about the murder. Mr. Bo was removed last March as party chief of the southwestern metropolis of Chongqing, where Mr. Wang had served as police chief, and was suspended from the Politburo a month later. | After an overnight stay, Mr. Wang left the consulate in the custody of state security officers and presumably told investigators, too, about the murder. Mr. Bo was removed last March as party chief of the southwestern metropolis of Chongqing, where Mr. Wang had served as police chief, and was suspended from the Politburo a month later. |
| Ms. Gu was convicted last month of murder and given a death sentence with a two-year suspension, which means she will probably wind up with a long prison term and not be put to death. | Ms. Gu was convicted last month of murder and given a death sentence with a two-year suspension, which means she will probably wind up with a long prison term and not be put to death. |
| With Mr. Wang’s trial over, Mr. Bo is the one remaining major figure in the matter yet to be tried. Speculation abounds over whether there will be an announcement or leaked statements concerning his fate before China’s once-a-decade leadership transition, which is expected this fall. There has been speculation, too, about whether Mr. Bo, who was being investigated for what the state news media called “serious disciplinary violations,” will face criminal charges or suffer punitive measures within the party system. | |
| On Wednesday, Xinhua released an official account of Mr. Wang’s trial, including testimony asserting that Mr. Bo had slapped Mr. Wang on Jan. 19, a day after Mr. Wang told Mr. Bo about his suspicions over Ms. Gu’s role in the Heywood murder. | On Wednesday, Xinhua released an official account of Mr. Wang’s trial, including testimony asserting that Mr. Bo had slapped Mr. Wang on Jan. 19, a day after Mr. Wang told Mr. Bo about his suspicions over Ms. Gu’s role in the Heywood murder. |
| The public announcement of that episode indicated that the party might try Mr. Bo on a criminal charge of attempting to cover up the murder. (Even before the Xinhua report, American officials had said that Mr. Wang told American diplomats in Chengdu that Mr. Bo had hit him.) | The public announcement of that episode indicated that the party might try Mr. Bo on a criminal charge of attempting to cover up the murder. (Even before the Xinhua report, American officials had said that Mr. Wang told American diplomats in Chengdu that Mr. Bo had hit him.) |
| The Xinhua article did not name Mr. Bo as the person who slapped Mr. Wang, but the phrase used to describe him left no doubt about the slapper’s identity. | The Xinhua article did not name Mr. Bo as the person who slapped Mr. Wang, but the phrase used to describe him left no doubt about the slapper’s identity. |
| The official account of the trial also emphasized arguments from both the prosecutors and defense lawyers asking the court to show leniency toward Mr. Wang. The account said Mr. Wang had cooperated with investigations into transgressions by others. This was a reference to Ms. Gu’s case, but it might also have indicated that Mr. Wang helped with the inquiries concerning Mr. Bo. | The official account of the trial also emphasized arguments from both the prosecutors and defense lawyers asking the court to show leniency toward Mr. Wang. The account said Mr. Wang had cooperated with investigations into transgressions by others. This was a reference to Ms. Gu’s case, but it might also have indicated that Mr. Wang helped with the inquiries concerning Mr. Bo. |
| Court officials also laid out Mr. Wang’s role in the Heywood murder. Mr. Wang was accused of helping cover up for Ms. Gu after she told him that she had killed Mr. Heywood, and he was formally charged with bending the law for personal gain. Court officials also said that one day before the murder, Mr. Wang spoke about Mr. Heywood with Ms. Gu and agreed to keep the Briton under surveillance. | Court officials also laid out Mr. Wang’s role in the Heywood murder. Mr. Wang was accused of helping cover up for Ms. Gu after she told him that she had killed Mr. Heywood, and he was formally charged with bending the law for personal gain. Court officials also said that one day before the murder, Mr. Wang spoke about Mr. Heywood with Ms. Gu and agreed to keep the Briton under surveillance. |
| During Ms. Gu’s trial, court officials said Ms. Gu had killed Mr. Heywood because she believed he was threatening her son, Bo Guagua, who graduated from a master’s program at Harvard University this summer. | During Ms. Gu’s trial, court officials said Ms. Gu had killed Mr. Heywood because she believed he was threatening her son, Bo Guagua, who graduated from a master’s program at Harvard University this summer. |
| The court account of Mr. Wang’s trial had a bizarre description of the son’s trying to drive to meet Mr. Wang at a city outside Chongqing one night and almost getting into an accident. That story was included in the account to show rising tensions between Mr. Wang and Ms. Gu in the weeks after the murder. | The court account of Mr. Wang’s trial had a bizarre description of the son’s trying to drive to meet Mr. Wang at a city outside Chongqing one night and almost getting into an accident. That story was included in the account to show rising tensions between Mr. Wang and Ms. Gu in the weeks after the murder. |
| After Bo Xilai hit Mr. Wang on Jan. 19, the account said, Mr. Wang ordered his police allies to collect evidence that would show Ms. Gu’s involvement in the murder. Mr. Wang had several police officers keep separate pieces of evidence, including a blood sample from Mr. Heywood’s heart and a secret recording Mr. Wang had made of Ms. Gu confessing to him. After the authorities took him to Beijing, the account said, Mr. Wang asked a police ally, Li Yang, to turn over the blood sample to investigators. | After Bo Xilai hit Mr. Wang on Jan. 19, the account said, Mr. Wang ordered his police allies to collect evidence that would show Ms. Gu’s involvement in the murder. Mr. Wang had several police officers keep separate pieces of evidence, including a blood sample from Mr. Heywood’s heart and a secret recording Mr. Wang had made of Ms. Gu confessing to him. After the authorities took him to Beijing, the account said, Mr. Wang asked a police ally, Li Yang, to turn over the blood sample to investigators. |
| Mr. Wang’s lawyer, Wang Yuncai, who is not related to Mr. Wang, has said the Xinhua account of the proceedings was mostly accurate. But she disputed the accusation that Mr. Wang had taken bribes from two associates of the Bo family. | Mr. Wang’s lawyer, Wang Yuncai, who is not related to Mr. Wang, has said the Xinhua account of the proceedings was mostly accurate. But she disputed the accusation that Mr. Wang had taken bribes from two associates of the Bo family. |
Patrick Zuo contributed research. | Patrick Zuo contributed research. |