Shanghai -- China has named a former Supreme Court vice president to be Shanghai's anti-graft chief, following a corruption scandal that toppled the city's top leader.

Special coverage: Social security fund in spotlight Related readings: 'Time ripe for welfare reform' Fund warned of risks in investment Pension fund to be invested in railways Ministry tightens social security fund rules Scandal offers opportunity for action Shanghai issues social security guidelines

A city government spokeswoman, who refused to give her name, confirmed 52-year-old Shen Deyong's appointment as the secretary for the city's Commission for Discipline Inspection in a phone call Tuesday, though she said she was unsure when it had taken place.

Shanghai's top leader, Communist Party secretary Chen Liangyu, was dismissed in September amid scandals that city officials allowed US$400 million in government-held pension funds to be illicitly invested in potentially risky real estate and toll road projects.

Top city government and party officials are among dozens of people reportedly implicated in the scandal.

Chen's replacement as party secretary has not yet been named, although Mayor Han Zheng has been standing in as acting party secretary.

Shen's predecessor as secretary for Shanghai's Commission for Discipline Inspection was Luo Shiqian, who remains as a deputy party secretary for the city.

In a visit to the headquarters for the 2010 Shanghai World Expo, Shen urged officials to do more to prevent and punish corruption, the Shanghai Daily reported Tuesday.

Apart from his position in the Supreme Court, Shen was also a member of the Standing Committee of the party's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.

Investigators from that agency have continued their probe into the pension funds scandal, operating from a downtown hotel.