A former anti-corruption official in the southwestern province of Guizhou has been sentenced to 13 years in prison for taking bribes.

The Intermediate People's Court in the provincial capital Guiyang found that Liu Guoqing, former head of the Anti-Corruption Bureau of the Provincial People's Procuratorate, had accepted bribes totaling 73,000 US dollars between 1998 and 2002.

Liu surrendered 57,550 US dollars of his illicit income after his case was disclosed last year.

The court also ruled that Liu's 100,000 yuan (US$12,000) of personal property be confiscated and the remainder of his illicit income be retrieved.

(Xinhua News Agency January 17, 2004)