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The former chairman of Huarong Asset Management Co, Lai Xiaomin, has been sentenced to death for receiving bribes and committing bigamy, the People's Daily reported on Tuesday, citing a local court, Reuters reports.

On August 11, XInhua reported that he pleaded guilty to charges of taking bribes, embezzlement, and bigamy during an open trial at the Second Municipal Intermediate People's Court of Tianjin.

Lai was accused of taking advantage of his various posts or the convenience associated with his status to seek illegitimate benefits for others between 2008 and 2018, according to an indictment.

In return, he accepted money and gifts worth approximately 1.79 billion yuan (over 256 million U.S. dollars), of which more than 104 million yuan was never received.

From the end of 2009 to January 2018, Lai took advantage of his positions to illegally seize public funds of more than 25.13 million yuan, in collusion with others, said the indictment.

Lai was also charged with bigamous violations of his legal marriage, including fathering two illegitimate children, according to the indictment.

During the trial, prosecutors presented evidence, which the defendant and his lawyers examined in turn. Both sides gave their full accounts of events.

In his final statement, Lai pleaded guilty and expressed remorse.-Reuters/Xinhua

Lai Xiaomin, ex-chair of China Huarong Asset Management, gets death for graft