China has sentenced two former defence ministers, Wei Fenghe and Li Shangfu, to death with a two-year reprieve over separate corruption convictions.
The sentences were handed down on Thursday by a military court in Beijing after investigations that lasted nearly two years.
Under Chinese law, a death sentence with a two-year reprieve is reserved for some of the country’s most serious offences, including major corruption and violent crimes. In most cases, the sentence is later commuted to life imprisonment if the convicted person does not commit further offences during the reprieve period.
According to the court ruling, both Wei and Li will have their sentences reduced to life imprisonment without parole after the two-year period expires.
The court also ordered that both men be stripped of their political rights for life, while all personal assets linked to them would be confiscated.
Wei was convicted of accepting bribes, while Li was found guilty of both accepting and offering bribes.
Both men previously served as members of China’s powerful Central Military Commission and also held the rank of state councillor.
Authorities did not disclose the amount of money involved in the bribery cases. However, reports noted that one of the last senior military officials to receive a suspended death sentence for corruption was Gu Junshan, whose case allegedly involved more than 600 million yuan, equivalent to about $98 million.
