Chongqing's former justice chief executed

Chongqing’s former top justice official was executed on Wednesday by lethal injection, state media reported. Wen Qiang, who used to head the municipality’s Judicial Bureau and who served for 16 years as the vice-director of the Public Security Bureau was put to death after having his appeal rejected in May by China’s Supreme Court. Wen was found guilty of several charges including rape, bribery, shielding criminal gangs, and inability to account for his financial holdings. The former justice chief was arrested in September 2009 in a high-profile crackdown on Chongqing’s criminal underworld. Reports state that upon announcement of Wen’s execution some local residents set off firecrackers and held banners reading "Wen’s execution, Chongqing’s stability" at the gates of the Municipal People’s High Court and outside the municipal Communist Party Committee. The case has received widespread media attention as Beijing looks to get tough on corruption.