China Executes Corrupt Official

China Executes Former Top-ranking Official For Graft

(RTTNews) - In the latest demonstration of the stern stance of China's ruling Communist Party on corruption, a former head of the company that owns Beijing Capital International Airport was executed Friday, after being convicted of bribery and embezzlement totaling nearly $16 million.

Li Peiying, former chairman and general manager of the state-run Capital Airports Holding Company (CAH), was put to death in the eastern city of Jinan, the provincial capital of Shandong, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

The sexagenarian was involved in the graft during his 8-year tenure since 1995 in the top post of CAH, a firm with 30 airports across nine provinces in China.

The Supreme People's Court upheld a lower court's rejection of his appeal after he was convicted in February.

Courts in China often hand down harsh sentences in cases of major frauds. China executes more people than any other country, but the death sentence is usually reserved for violent crimes.

Another high-ranking official, Kang Rixin, general manager of China's National Nuclear Corporation, is being investigated for allegedly squandering public funds and accepting bribes valued at up to $260 million.