A Chinese court has found disgraced former top
politician Bo Xilai guilty of bribery, embezzlement
and abuse of power.
The former party chief of Chongqing was sentenced to
life imprisonment, but has the right to appeal.
He had denied all the charges against him in a fiery
defence at his trial.
Bo was removed from office last year amid a scandal
which saw his wife convicted for the murder of British
businessman Neil Heywood.
The verdict was handed down by the Intermediate
People's Court in Jinan, Shandong province.
Passing sentence the judge told Bo that he had
damaged China's national interests and the interests of
its people, wrongfully using his position in power to
receive bribes totalling 20 million Chinese Yuan
($3.2m; £2m).
He rejected Bo's claims that his confession to the
crimes was acquired through illegal means such as
torture and interrogation, and said it therefore stood.
The BBC's John Sudworth, outside the court, said that
the judge completely demolished Bo's defence
arguments.
During Bo's trial last month the court took the
unprecedented step of releasing details about
proceedings on its Weibo microblog.
Bo was sentenced to life in prison on the bribery
charges, 15 years for embezzlement and seven years
for abuse of power - our correspondent says that he
has been politically buried. In addition all his personal
wealth has been confiscated.
He has 10 days to appeal against his sentence and
conviction, but correspondents say that any such move
is highly unlikely to be successful.
Although his trial was conducted under an
unprecedented degree of openness for China, many
analysts say that the guilty verdict was always a
foregone conclusion - and many see the process
against him as having a very strong political dimension.
Prosecutors had said that Bo accepted the bribes and
embezzled public funds from Dalian, where he used to
be mayor.
He was also accused of abusing his office by using his
position to cover up for his wife Gu Kailai, convicted
last year of murdering Neil Heywood in 2011.
In lengthy comments in court, he said he did not
illegally obtain millions of dollars or cover up Mr
Heywood's killing.
He also dismissed the testimony of two key witnesses,
describing his wife's statement as "ridiculous" and his
former police chief Wang Lijun's testimony as "full of
lies and fraud".
Political crisis
Bo's fall from power was triggered when Wang sought
refuge in the US consulate in Chengdu in February
2012.
The incident prompted an investigation into the death
of Mr Heywood. Wang has since been jailed for 15
years for helping Gu cover up the murder.
The Bo Xilai scandal triggered a crisis in the Communist
Party, which was about to hold its once-in-a-decade
leadership handover, and revealed divisions at the top
of the party over how Bo should be handled.
Mr Bo dismissed the testimony of Wang Lijun (left) and
his own wife Gu Kailai
Two years ago Bo Xilai was seen as a candidate for
promotion to the Politburo Standing Committee,
China's top decision-making body.
His downfall was seen as the biggest political shake-up
to hit China's ruling elite in decades.
But his trial also offered the public a rare glimpse into
the life of China's rich and powerful, with lurid details
emerging of lavish vacations and luxury villas.
Earlier this week, an overseas-based dissident Chinese
news website published a letter allegedly written by Bo
in prison on 12 September.
Hong Kong newspaper South China Morning Post said
that unidentified insiders with close ties to Mr Bo had
confirmed that the letter, addressed to Bo's family, was
genuine.
"I am an innocent victim and I feel wronged," the letter
read. "But I believe one day truth will prevail...I will
wait quietly in jail for that day to come."
politician Bo Xilai guilty of bribery, embezzlement
and abuse of power.
The former party chief of Chongqing was sentenced to
life imprisonment, but has the right to appeal.
He had denied all the charges against him in a fiery
defence at his trial.
Bo was removed from office last year amid a scandal
which saw his wife convicted for the murder of British
businessman Neil Heywood.
The verdict was handed down by the Intermediate
People's Court in Jinan, Shandong province.
Passing sentence the judge told Bo that he had
damaged China's national interests and the interests of
its people, wrongfully using his position in power to
receive bribes totalling 20 million Chinese Yuan
($3.2m; £2m).
He rejected Bo's claims that his confession to the
crimes was acquired through illegal means such as
torture and interrogation, and said it therefore stood.
The BBC's John Sudworth, outside the court, said that
the judge completely demolished Bo's defence
arguments.
During Bo's trial last month the court took the
unprecedented step of releasing details about
proceedings on its Weibo microblog.
Bo was sentenced to life in prison on the bribery
charges, 15 years for embezzlement and seven years
for abuse of power - our correspondent says that he
has been politically buried. In addition all his personal
wealth has been confiscated.
He has 10 days to appeal against his sentence and
conviction, but correspondents say that any such move
is highly unlikely to be successful.
Although his trial was conducted under an
unprecedented degree of openness for China, many
analysts say that the guilty verdict was always a
foregone conclusion - and many see the process
against him as having a very strong political dimension.
Prosecutors had said that Bo accepted the bribes and
embezzled public funds from Dalian, where he used to
be mayor.
He was also accused of abusing his office by using his
position to cover up for his wife Gu Kailai, convicted
last year of murdering Neil Heywood in 2011.
In lengthy comments in court, he said he did not
illegally obtain millions of dollars or cover up Mr
Heywood's killing.
He also dismissed the testimony of two key witnesses,
describing his wife's statement as "ridiculous" and his
former police chief Wang Lijun's testimony as "full of
lies and fraud".
Political crisis
Bo's fall from power was triggered when Wang sought
refuge in the US consulate in Chengdu in February
2012.
The incident prompted an investigation into the death
of Mr Heywood. Wang has since been jailed for 15
years for helping Gu cover up the murder.
The Bo Xilai scandal triggered a crisis in the Communist
Party, which was about to hold its once-in-a-decade
leadership handover, and revealed divisions at the top
of the party over how Bo should be handled.
Mr Bo dismissed the testimony of Wang Lijun (left) and
his own wife Gu Kailai
Two years ago Bo Xilai was seen as a candidate for
promotion to the Politburo Standing Committee,
China's top decision-making body.
His downfall was seen as the biggest political shake-up
to hit China's ruling elite in decades.
But his trial also offered the public a rare glimpse into
the life of China's rich and powerful, with lurid details
emerging of lavish vacations and luxury villas.
Earlier this week, an overseas-based dissident Chinese
news website published a letter allegedly written by Bo
in prison on 12 September.
Hong Kong newspaper South China Morning Post said
that unidentified insiders with close ties to Mr Bo had
confirmed that the letter, addressed to Bo's family, was
genuine.
"I am an innocent victim and I feel wronged," the letter
read. "But I believe one day truth will prevail...I will
wait quietly in jail for that day to come."
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