Lujiazui
The official who oversaw the creation of the glitzy Lujiazui business district in Shanghai’s Pudong area has been sentenced to life in prison for accepting bribes.
Kang Huijun, 51, formerly vice governor of Pudong, headed the Lujiazui Group and other development bodies from 1993 to 2004.
He was convicted of accepting RMB5.9 million ($862,700) in bribes, funnelled through his wife, Wang Xiaoqin, 50, who was sentenced to five years in prison.
Lujiazui was a swampy point of land that held scattered towns and shabby factories two decades ago. How it looks now is shown in our illustration.
It now boasts China’s tallest skyscrapers, as well as the banks, stock exchange and futures markets that have made Shanghai China’s financial hub.
According to Caijing Kang Huijun, a slight, polite man with a precise knowledge of Shanghai’s property and infrastructure, was in charge of approving all major land deals and transactions in Lujiazui.
He was accused of awarding lucrative contracts and approving land sales in exchange for cash, which he used to buy property at below-market value.
The couple was accused of accumulating RMB12 million in ‘unjustified assets.’
The officials who guided Shanghai’s rise have been decimated by a series of property-related corruption cases over the last three years.
You must log in to post a comment.