The former official, Xiao Tian, reportedly confessed to accepting 7.96 million yuan (US$ 1.15 million) in bribes between 1997 and 2014. The Nanyang City Intermediate People's Court also seized assets worth 500,000 yuan (US$ 72,000).
The Associated Press reported in September last year that the internal disciplinary body within China's Communist Party had stripped Xiao of his party membership and of official duties. The party reportedly forwarded the case to authorities who initiated an investigation.
Chinese media reported that the court gave a relatively lenient sentence because Xiao had confessed, handed over his ill-gotten gains, and had provided authorities with previously unknown details of his corruption.
