CPC expels former Shanghai chief procurator

BEIJING -- Chen Xu, former Party chief and retired procurator-general of Shanghai Municipal People's Procuratorate, has been expelled from the Communist Party of China (CPC) for multiple offenses including "superstitious activities" and graft.

The CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) announced Thursday that Chen was found to have violated the Party's code of conduct and been involved in corruption.

The CCDI carried out an investigation into Chen upon approval of the CPC Central Committee.

The investigation found that Chen had illegally interfered with the work of the procuratorate and sought personal gain in handling cases, which had done great damage to the credibility of the judicial system.

For a long time he had practiced "superstitious activities" betraying the Party requirement for atheism and was found to have resisted the Party's investigation, the CCDI statement said.

Chen traded power for money and plotted with his relatives, allowing them to use his influence to seek profits, according to the CCDI.

It also found that Chen had flouted frugality rules by frequenting private clubs and allowing others to pay for him to play golf, as well as violating the code of conduct regarding Party members' personal life.

The statement said that as a senior official of the CPC, Chen had lost his values, seriously violated the Party's code of conduct and did not cease his inappropriate behavior after the CPC 18th National Congress in 2012 when the new leadership launched the anti-corruption campaign.

The CPC Central Committee has approved his expulsion from the Party and the removal of his retirement benefits.

His illegal gains will be confiscated and the case will be transferred to judicial organs for investigation into his alleged crimes, the CCDI statement said.