The Beijing police bureau's former Internet chief, involved in the largest ever national computer anti-virus industry scandal, stood trial at Beijing No 1 Intermediate Court yesterday for taking bribes of up to 14 million yuan.
Yu Bing, 40, was the former head of the division of public information network supervision from 2005 to 2008.
Yu was charged with corruption and accepting 4.2 million yuan in bribes from computer security firm Rising International Software Company Ltd to frame its competitor, Beijing Eastern Micro Point Info-Tech Company Ltd, with spreading computer viruses and threatening network security. He also illegally detained Tian Yakui, Micro Point's vice-president, for 11 months.
Yu also accepted another 9.8 million yuan in bribes from three other network companies. He allegedly spent it on precious calligraphy and paintings, the Beijing Evening News reported yesterday.
At the trial, Yu didn't deny the accusation.
Guo Jingxia, a press official with the court, told METRO yesterday that Yu would be sentenced after the Spring Festival.
The biggest computer virus scandal in the city's justice system was first revealed by Science and Technology Daily in February 2009. It was denied by Rising.
During the annual legislative meeting, which concluded last Saturday, the scandal was first officially revealed in the working report of the municipal people's procuratorate.
Tian and 20 other staff members from Micro Point attended the hearing.
More than 30 journalists were stopped outside the court.
During the investigation from July 2005 to September 2008, Yu accepted 14 million yuan in bribes, prosecutors told the court.
Meanwhile, Yu escaped to Africa but was persuaded to return by the municipal people's procuratorate in September 2008.
Zhang Pengyun, a former employee of Yu, was sentenced to three years for aiding and assisting Yu, with three years of probation by the Beijing No 1 Intermediate Court.
