Ex-traffic police chief on bribery charge

A Beijing court began hearing a case on Monday against the city's former traffic police chief who is accused of receiving 23.9 million yuan ($3.9 million) in bribes and of trading in privileged car license plates.

Song Jian'guo, 61, admitted misusing his government position for the benefit of others, according to Beijing First Intermediate People's Court.

Song is the former head of the traffic administration bureau under the Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau.

The court said that in his defense Song claimed that 15.3 million yuan of the total amount involved should not be determined as bribes.

However, no further details were made public. The court decided to announce the verdict at a date yet to be decided.

Song was removed from his post in December 2012. It took two-and-a-half years to prepare the evidence to charge his suspected crimes.

He was suspected of taking large bribes and was expelled from the Communist Party of China, the Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection said in August last year.

He was charged on Feb 6 with misusing his power and granting businesspeople license plates with the letter "A", a symbol for the vehicles used by top government officials that are given priority on the roads.

He was also accused of using his power to assist driving schools for business interests.

Song's secretary Wang Fei, two drivers and two people who served under him have been sentenced to prison for acting as middle men in trading the "A" plates.

Chi Mou was given a three-year prison term suspended for four years last week for giving bribes of 100,000 yuan to Song for two "A" plates.

According to reports in Caijing Magazine, Song bought two apartments at below-market prices from a businessman and gave them to a woman and helped her and her two brothers to obtain hukou, household registration, in Beijing.

Song also accepted two shops from the businessman. In return, Song used his power to solve disputes involving public security for the businessman and gave him license plates with road privileges.

The reports also said that Song accepted about 2 million yuan from the Xinyue Driving School from 2007 to 2012 to help lift administrative bans on the school.

He is also alleged to have taken bribes from an advertising company and approved its application to set up large TV screens on major roads.

zhang_yi@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 05/26/2015 page3)