Popular micro-blogger pleads guilty to spreading false online rumors

A former popular Chinese micro-blogger pleaded guilty on Friday to fabricating online rumors to agitate the public.

Beijing prosecutors charged Qin Zhihui, better known by his online name, Qin Huohuo, with defamation and provocation by creating and spreading rumors on the Internet.

Qin, 30, from Hunan province, was the first accused person taken to court after a police crackdown on companies that spread rumors on websites for profit. A number of people were arrested last year on suspicion of fabricating information to harm others' reputations.