Former head of China’s religious affairs administration sentenced to 11 years in prison for bribery

SHENYANG, July 23 (Xinhua) — Cui Maohu, former head of the National Religious Affairs Administration, was sentenced to 11 years in prison for accepting bribes, according to a verdict handed down by a court in Shenyang City, northeast China’s Liaoning Province, on Tuesday.
Cui, also former deputy head of the United Front Work Department of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, was fined 1.5 million yuan (about 210,278 U.S. dollars). His illegal gains will be confiscated and turned over to the state treasury, according to the verdict.
An investigation into Cui’s case revealed that between 2007 and 2023, he took undue advantage of his positions to secure benefits for others in matters of project contracting, payment allocation, and official appointments. In return, he illegally accepted money and property worth 10.43 million yuan.
The court stated that Cui’s actions constituted the crime of bribery, involving an exceptionally high amount of money, warranting punishment in accordance with the law. Considering that he cooperated during the investigation, confessed his crimes truthfully and expressed remorse, the court gave a lenient sentence. ■