Overview
- China’s PLA military court, reported by state media Thursday, sentenced former defense ministers Wei Fenghe and Li Shangfu to death with two-year reprieves for bribery offenses.
- Under the reprieve system, the death penalty typically converts to life in prison if no violations occur during the two-year period.
- The court barred any further sentence reductions or parole and ordered lifetime loss of political rights and full confiscation of assets.
- Official reports did not disclose charge breakdowns, evidence, or the amounts involved in the alleged corruption.
- Li previously oversaw weapons procurement before becoming defense minister in 2023 and was removed that October, while both men were expelled from the Communist Party in June 2024 after investigations into serious violations.