by Pi Ping

Former Democracy and Law Press Zhejiang Province bureau chief and Huaxia Times Zhejiang chief of correspondents Zhu Qing has been convicted of fraud and embezzlement. On the afternoon of Thursday July 17 the conviction was announced in Hangzhou's urban district court. He was sentenced to 7 years and 6 months imprisonment, and must return 100,000 yuan in stolen funds and pay a 5,000 yuan fine. Included is the 19 months he has served since being arrested in 1986.

In the trial it was maintained that Zhu Qing had accepted a payment of 100,000 yuan from a Hangzhou company in exchange for a seat on the Democracy and Law Press board of directors. But Zhu Qing did not deposit the payment into his newspaper's Beijing account, instead keeping it for himself. Zhu Qing argued that the payment was for consulting services he had provided, but the plaintiff maintained that it was defrauded. Zhu Qing's family is very dissatisfied with the verdict and plan to appeal it. This is the same court that sentenced China Industrial and Commercial Times Zhejiang Bureau Chief Meng Huaihu to 7 years in prison for accepting bribes and carrying out duplicitous transactions. When his verdict was appealed, the appeals court increased his sentence to 12 years.
http://www.canyu.org/n2786c6.aspx