GOME boss faces trial over graft, sly trading
By Wang Xiang |
April 23, 2010, Friday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
THE trial of home-appliance tycoon Huang Guangyu began in Beijing yesterday following an investigative process that took more than a year.
Huang is facing charges of illegal business dealings, insider trading and bribery and was formally arrested in March last year.
Huang, 41, once the richest person on the Chinese mainland and the chairman of GOME Electrical Appliances Holdings, is appearing before Beijing No. 2 Intermediate People's Court in a hearing expected to last three days.
Huang, also known as Wong Kwong-yu, was listed as the mainland's richest man in 2004, 2005, and 2008 and his case has been in the spotlight since he was detained by Beijing police in November, 2008.
Wife Accused
The trial date had been deferred several times.
Huang was charged with illegal foreign exchange trading in Hong Kong in 2007 and exploiting insider information to gain 3.48 million yuan (US$509,700) in profits from shares in the Shenzhen-listed Zhongguancun Co.
He was also accused of offering bribes of 4.56 million yuan (US$667,600) to a number of government officials seeking preferential treatment.
Huang's wife, Du Juan, stood trial with him yesterday charged with insider trading.
Xu Zhongmin, the president of Zhongguancun Co, is also on trial for allegedly leaking information to Huang.
Some high-ranking officials have been sacked for links with Huang and GOME.
These include Huang Songyou, a former vice head of the Supreme Court; Zheng Shaodong, a former assistant to the public security minister; and Guo Jingyi, a former commerce ministry official.
Jail term
In Guo's trial last month, he was accused of taking 1.1 million yuan from Huang's company during 2004 and 2007 to help GOME float and merge with fellow home-appliance giant Yongle.
The company faces a massive fine if the bribery counts are proven.
Both the company and the court refused to comment on the case yesterday.
Huang resigned as GOME's chairman in January last year and no one from the company appeared in court yesterday.
Huang may face a jail term of up to 20 years if found guilty of all charges, according to legal experts.
Authorities in Hong Kong also are investigating accusations that Huang diverted money from a Gome share buyback to repay a personal loan, The Associated Press reported.
Hong Kong regulators say that caused Gome and its shareholders to lose 1.6 billion Hong Kong dollars (US$207 million).
Hong Kong has frozen assets belong to Huang and his wife, according to the agency.
Huang is facing charges of illegal business dealings, insider trading and bribery and was formally arrested in March last year.
Huang, 41, once the richest person on the Chinese mainland and the chairman of GOME Electrical Appliances Holdings, is appearing before Beijing No. 2 Intermediate People's Court in a hearing expected to last three days.
Huang, also known as Wong Kwong-yu, was listed as the mainland's richest man in 2004, 2005, and 2008 and his case has been in the spotlight since he was detained by Beijing police in November, 2008.
Wife Accused
The trial date had been deferred several times.
Huang was charged with illegal foreign exchange trading in Hong Kong in 2007 and exploiting insider information to gain 3.48 million yuan (US$509,700) in profits from shares in the Shenzhen-listed Zhongguancun Co.
He was also accused of offering bribes of 4.56 million yuan (US$667,600) to a number of government officials seeking preferential treatment.
Huang's wife, Du Juan, stood trial with him yesterday charged with insider trading.
Xu Zhongmin, the president of Zhongguancun Co, is also on trial for allegedly leaking information to Huang.
Some high-ranking officials have been sacked for links with Huang and GOME.
These include Huang Songyou, a former vice head of the Supreme Court; Zheng Shaodong, a former assistant to the public security minister; and Guo Jingyi, a former commerce ministry official.
Jail term
In Guo's trial last month, he was accused of taking 1.1 million yuan from Huang's company during 2004 and 2007 to help GOME float and merge with fellow home-appliance giant Yongle.
The company faces a massive fine if the bribery counts are proven.
Both the company and the court refused to comment on the case yesterday.
Huang resigned as GOME's chairman in January last year and no one from the company appeared in court yesterday.
Huang may face a jail term of up to 20 years if found guilty of all charges, according to legal experts.
Authorities in Hong Kong also are investigating accusations that Huang diverted money from a Gome share buyback to repay a personal loan, The Associated Press reported.
Hong Kong regulators say that caused Gome and its shareholders to lose 1.6 billion Hong Kong dollars (US$207 million).
Hong Kong has frozen assets belong to Huang and his wife, according to the agency.
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