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Former Chinese Bank Chief Lai Xiaomin Given Death Sentence for Bribery, Bigamy

Lai Xiaomin, former chair of Huarong Asset Management, stands accused of taking $277 million in bribes over the span of a decade.

A former Chinese bank executive has been sentenced to death for bribery and bigamy, The New York Times reported on Tuesday. Lai Xiaomin, former chair of Huarong Asset Management, stands accused of taking $277 million in bribes over the span of a decade until 2018. “The court ruled that [he] did not deserve leniency after taking into account the serious damage his crimes have inflicted on society,” a statement from a Chinese court read, according to the South China Morning Post. All of Lai’s personal assets will be confiscated by the government, the court ruled. President Xi Jinping has made anticorruption a hallmark of his tenure. While China is thought to use the death penalty liberally, the government does not release statistics on executions, per the Times.