China expels former intelligence official Gao Yichen from Communist Party for corruption

Former top Chinese intelligence official Gao Yichen has been expelled from the Communist Party for corruption after being accused of receiving bribes and interfering with judicial matters.Gao, 75, former vice-minister of the Ministry of State Security, was found to have “seriously violated party discipline”, according to an official announcement by top anti-corruption watchdog Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) on Tuesday. He also served as deputy director of the party’s now-dissolved anti-cult office.The investigation concluded he had “lost his ideals and convictions”, “lacked political awareness and political discernment” and engaged in “extensive collusion” between government and business, “severely contaminating the political environment”.The CCDI statement explicitly condemned Gao for “continuing to wantonly amass wealth after retirement”. It said he exemplified the “retired but not resting” phenomenon, in which former officials leverage their influence for personal gain.After his retirement, he cultivated a philanthropic image by founding a cultural heritage committee under the Association for Yan Huang Culture of China, according to media reports.The CCDI said he had used his power to seek gains for others in areas such as initial public offering (IPO) approvals, land transfer rights and the handling of legal cases, while illegally accepting large sums of money.