Documentary: 'White gloves' cloaked corrupt officials

An anti-corruption documentary aired on Tuesday night revealed that some former senior officials involved in corruption used family members or close associates as "white gloves" to conduct power-for-money transactions and evade detection.

The third episode of the documentary, jointly produced by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the National Commission of Supervision and the China Media Group, exposed Tang Yijun, former governor of Liaoning province and minister of justice. He used companies controlled by his wife as a cover-up for his corrupt activities to present them as market operations, according to the program.

Tang was placed under investigation in April last year. His wife, Xuan Minjie, had extensive experience in finance and economics and ventured into business in 2005, after holding a senior position at a State-owned enterprise. According to the documentary, Xuan's initial capital for entering the business world was obtained through Tang's influence. At that time, he was serving as deputy Party secretary of Ningbo city, Zhejiang province.

A company collaborated with Xuan's firm on a real estate project. However, she didn't need to make any investment, as her husband intervened with relevant departments and secured the land-use rights and other necessary approvals for the project. After the project was completed, Xuan's company profited over 5 million yuan ($681,970) under the guise of exiting the project and receiving equity compensation.

This zero-investment windfall demonstrated the benefits of power, which Tang and his wife found enticing, according to the documentary.

It revealed that Tang operated behind Xuan who, in turn, hid behind multiple proxies, controlling several shadow companies. This complicated the investigation. However, based on clues, investigators used big data techniques to uncover more shadow companies, suspected proxies and bribery suspects linked to Xuan, gradually revealing the truth behind the guise.

The investigation found that the couple meticulously disguised each bribe as a different business activity. From 2012 to 2017, a tech company gradually acquired a small company controlled by Xuan, resulting in her holding 4.5 million original shares of the tech company.

The acquisition aimed to leverage Tang's influence to facilitate the company's public listing. He used his position to advocate for the company with relevant officials. After the company was listed, the value of Xuan's shares soared, resulting in profits exceeding 40 million yuan, completing the massive transfer of benefits under the guise of market operations.

Sensing the risk of being investigated, the couple initially colluded with relevant individuals to fabricate stories and conceal evidence. They resisted the investigation with lies at the beginning. However, when the special investigation team presented them with solid evidence obtained through big data analysis, the couple's "psychological defenses" quickly crumbled, according to the documentary.

Tang was found to have used his positions to benefit others in business operations, company listings, promotions and case handling, receiving substantial illegal gains. In October, he was expelled from the Party and dismissed from public office, with his suspected criminal activities referred to the procuratorial authorities for prosecution.

Additionally, the documentary disclosed similar corruption by Sun Zhigang, former Party secretary of Guizhou province, who came under investigation in August 2023. Sun exploited his position to benefit others in project contracts and share subscriptions, receiving substantial illegal gains.

The investigation revealed that several close relatives were involved in Sun's corrupt activities, with his brother, Sun Shaowu, acting as his primary "collector". The brother, who had long been involved in business, leveraged Sun's influence to interfere in market activities in Guizhou.

A company seeking to operate in Guizhou needed the former provincial Party chief's support for certain projects. He agreed to assist but requested that the firm acquire equity in a land project owned by the brother in Wuhan, Hubei province. The company executive, with the intention of currying favor with the former official, completed the acquisition at a price far above the market rate.

Sun's wife and son also exploited his power to gain resources and interfere in projects for personal gain. The investigation found that Sun directly or indirectly accepted money and goods illegally from relevant organizations and individuals, amounting to over 813 million yuan. Sun was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve for bribery last year.