Prosecutors strengthen hunt for corrupt officials abroad

Prosecuting departments will strengthen law enforcement cooperation with relevant countries and step up the hunt for corrupt officials who have fled abroad, the Supreme People's Procuratorate said on Tuesday.

Figures provided by the SPP show that, from 2010 to May 2014, national prosecuting departments captured 4,831 fugitives at home and abroad.

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In 2013 alone, prosecuting departments arrested 16 corrupt officials overseas, of which 12 were persuaded by prosecutors to return to face trial, according to statistics provided by the SPP.

Those fugitives included Chen Manxiong, former manager of Shiye Development Co in Zhongshan, Guangdong province, who was repatriated to China after spending seven years on the run in Thailand after being charged with embezzlement; and Yu Zhendong, who was brought back to China after fleeing to the United States for three years after corruption and embezzlement allegations.

"We will cooperate more closely with judicial organs in relevant countries, such as the US and Canada, to expand channels and measures to hunt those who have escaped and to recover ill-gotten gains," said Cao Jianming, procurator-general of the Supreme People's Procuratorate.

Prosecutors will also start procedures to confiscate assets that fugitives have transferred overseas. "Once evidence is solid, we will initiate the confiscation procedure according to the criminal law to cut off the fugitives' economic support," Cao said.

In March, the top prosecuting department issued a notice that prosecuting departments would establish and update a database for corrupt officials who are still on the run, and "no matter where the fugitives are hiding or how long they have escaped justice, we will try everything to find them."

Cao said they would severely punish corrupt officials who have escaped, while taking effective measures to recover illegally transferred funds, and never allow fugitives to obtain great benefits.

The top prosecuting department has signed 113 bilateral cooperation agreements with judicial organs in 98 countries and regions and is holding international conferences to exchange views and concerns concerning the pursuit of fugitives and recovery of assets with the relevant countries, said Xu Jinhui, director of the SPP's anti-corruption and bribery bureau.

Prosecuting departments in border areas, including Yunnan, Heilongjiang and the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, have also been working closely with their counterparts abroad to enhance their hunting efficiency and improve capabilities in transnational capture, obtaining evidence and recovering assets, he said.

For example, the Heilongjiang provincial prosecuting department has improved the mechanism to seek fugitives in the border area between China and Russia, and the Yunnan provincial prosecuting authority has held regular meetings with judicial organs in Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam to expand the channels for criminal judicial cooperation.

Hong Daode, a law professor at the China University of Political Science and Law, said, "The key is to establish a warning mechanism and take effective measures to prevent corrupt officials from fleeing abroad."

In addition, prosecuting authorities should enhance intelligence exchanges with financial regulators and banking systems to discover clues of suspects transferring illegal funds in a timely manner, and effectively improve their prevention and control capabilities, he said.