China Gives Former Governor Suspended Death Sentence in Bribery Case

The former governor of a northern Chinese province was handed a suspended death sentence on Tuesday for accepting bribes worth millions of dollars. 

Jin Xiangjun, 62, is the latest to be swept up in President Xi Jinping's wide-reaching anti-corruption campaign, which has brought down huge numbers of high-ranking officials. Jin, the ex-governor of Shanxi, took advantage of various government positions from 2004 to 2025 to accept bribes totalling more than 148 million yuan ($22 million) for



promotions and contracts, the court in central Henan province said.

Jin's actions involved "an especially large amount and caused particularly large losses" to the country and other citizens, the court added in its statement shared on social media. 

He was thus sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve -- a punishment that is typically commuted to life imprisonment after two years if no further crimes are unearthed. Jin was also denied political rights for life.