A court in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region on Tuesday commuted the sentence of a woman, who had originally been sentenced to death, to life in prison for fraudulent fundraising.
The woman, Su Yenyu, was sentenced to death by the Erdos Intermediate People's Court and the higher people's court in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region in 2013 for cheating investors out of 1.23 billion yuan (177 million U.S. dollars).
However, the Supreme People's Court remanded the case in March 2015, upon consideration that Su had surrendered herself to the police.
Erdos Intermediate People's Court retried the case publicly in July 2016 and commuted the sentence to life in prison Tuesday. She was also deprived of political rights for life, and all her personal property was confiscated.
Su began illegally raising money in 2006 and cheated investors out of 1.23 billion yuan, luring them with promises of high returns, and personally misappropriated 552 million yuan. She used the funds to invest in restaurants, health clubs, coal mines and farms, as well as to buy property, cars, lottery tickets and jewelry for herself.
She burned all documents related to her business between 2006 and October 2009 out of fear her illegal acts would be exposed. She surrendered to police on Sept. 20, 2011.
Ren Wenxiang, who supported Su's endeavors, was sentenced to four years and three months in prison and fined 500,000 yuan.
