Life sentence in biggest wine smuggling case
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Shanghai Daily, January 13, 2012
A wine smuggler has been jailed for life for illegally bringing 70,000 bottles worth 45 million yuan (US$7.128 million) to China's mainland.
Sun Xitai was convicted of forging invoices and import contracts to evade import duties of 20.3 million yuan between January 2004 and December 2009, the Beijing Times reported yesterday.
It was citing the city's No.2 Intermediate People's Court.
This is China's biggest wine smuggling case, said the newspaper.
Sun, aged 62, altered the name, details and price of luxury wines transported from France, Britain and Hong Kong, stating they were cheap alcohol, the court said.
The manager of three Beijing trading companies, Sun had been sentenced to one year in prison with a one year reprieve in the neighboring city of Tianjin in 2002, the newspaper said.
Despite this, he carried on the illegal business.
Sun said at his trial last September that he had no choice but to smuggle, as the tax rate on wines - up to 50 percent - was too high for him.
"It would be difficult to stay in business if I went through official channels," Sun said.
Sun, a native of northeastern Liaoning Province, pled guilty at court but insisted his profits were just 4 million yuan, the Beijing Times said.
His secretary, Meng Li, was sentenced to five years in prison and fined 2 million yuan for her involvement.
Both have appealed, the newspaper said.
Meanwhile, 122 bottles of smuggled wine were seized at Ningbo in eastern Zhejiang Province in December, reported China Central Television.
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