China jails former Interpol boss over bribery

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ANKARA (AA) - China on Tuesday sentenced a former head of Interpol to 13-and-a-half years in jail over charges of corruption, media reports said.

According to the South China Morning Post, a Hong Kong-based daily, China’s Tianjin No 1 Intermediate People’s Court found Meng Hongwei guilty of misusing his public authority between 2005 to 2017 when he served as vice-minister of public security and chief of China’s maritime police.

The court said that Meng had received bribes totaling 14.46 million yuan ($2.1 million) in 12 years.

Meng was the first Chinese national to head Interpol. He was elected to head Interpol in Nov. 2016, succeeding France’s Mireille Ballestrazzi.

It was in Oct. 2018 that French investigators had launched a probe into the disappearance of Meng, 64, who left France for China in late September that year.

He was “not reachable” and "untraceable” for quite some time. His wife, living in Lyon with their children, had reported Meng’s disappearance to the French authorities.

Meng will not appeal against the verdict.

South Korea’s Kim Jong Yang succeeded Meng as Interpol head after the latter resigned for being charged with accepting bribes by Chinese authorities.