Ex-Chinese govt official who fled to Singapore sentenced to life imprisonment

A former Chinese official, who once held permanent residency here, has been sentenced to life in prison for corruption, Chinese media reported on Monday (Jan 23).

Li Huabo, a former local finance official in eastern Jiangxi province, had been accused of embezzling 94 million yuan (S$19.4 million) in public funds and was among China’s most wanted “economic fugitives”.

He fled China in 2011 for Singapore, though it was unclear when he became a Permanent Resident (PR) here.
The official Xinhua news agency said Li’s sentence by the Intermediate People’s Court of Shangrao City took into consideration his “confession and expression of remorse”.

“Li will also have all his personal property confiscated and his remaining illicit gains will be recovered,” Xinhua added.

Singapore authorities froze Li’s assets and sentenced him to 15 months in jail in 2013 for receiving more than S$240,000 in stolen funds in his Singapore bank account.

Li was repatriated back to China on May 9, 2015 after serving his sentence, according to China’s anti-graft agency, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.

Singapore’s Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) said the PR status of the ex-official and that of his family members had been revoked.