'Richest judge' pleads guilty to taking bribes

Zhang Jiahui, the former vice-president of the Hainan High People's Court who is known as "the richest judge in China", pleaded guilty to taking bribes during a court hearing on Wednesday in Hainan province.

She was accused of taking bribes worth 43.75 million yuan ($6.17 million), according to a statement of the First Intermediate People's Court of Hainan Province.

The Hainan People's Procuratorate also charged Zhang with fraud and bending the law to intervene in administrative trials, according to the statement.

Zhang pleaded guilty, and the sentence will be given later, the court said.

Since 2006, Zhang had taken advantage of her positions in the Hainan High People's Court to seek benefits for others and receive huge amounts of property, according to the statement.

From 2015 to 2016, Zhang took advantage of her position in the judicial system to force others to make poor judgments, leading to her ex-husband's company underpaying a utility fee of 46.2 million yuan, the statement said.

In June 2001, Zhang and her ex-husband defrauded people out of 1.43 million yuan worth of property by claiming they can help them reduce penalties for criminal cases.