Former vice mayor of Shenzhen sentenced to 10 years in jail

A former vice mayor of south China's business hub Shenzhen, Liang Daoxing, has been sentenced to ten years in prison for corruption, authorities confirmed Tuesday.

The sentence was passed on Nov. 19 by the Intermediate People's Court of Zhaoqing city, but the announcement was stalled until Liang decided if he would choose to appeal. He did not appeal.

Liang, who was vice mayor of Shenzhen City from 2002 to early 2009, was found guilty of accepting bribes of 1.95 million yuan (318,000 US dollars), 1.78 million HK dollars (about 230,000 US dollars) and 5,000 US dollars, in return for "benefits" for others.

In addition to his prison term, Liang's personal wealth of 1 million yuan was confiscated and he was ordered to return all ill-gotten gains to the state, according to the Supreme People's Court website.