China’s Bo Xilai indicted for corruption, abuse of power – Xinhua

China’s once-powerful politician Bo Xilai has been indicted for bribery, corruption and abuse of power, the state news agency Xinhua said Thursday, July 25. The former party chief of the southwestern city of Chongqing has not been seen in public for more than a year since the controversy surrounding him was exposed, triggering one of China’s biggest political scandals in decades. Bo was accused of accepting “massive” bribes and bending the law, following his wife Gu Kailai’s conviction for murder of a British business associate. The scandal emerged last year when Bo’s police chief and right-hand man Wang Lijun fled to a US consulate, reportedly seeking asylum. It came ahead of a once-a-decade leadership transition last November, in which Bo had been considered a candidate for the Politburo Standing Committee, which currently has seven members and is China’s most powerful body.

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