Chinese businesswomen ‘detained in fallout from graft investigation into former Communist high-flyer Sun Zhengcai’
At least two of the entrepreneurs had businesses in the Beijing district of Shunyi, where Sun was once chief, reports say
Several Chinese businesswomen reportedly linked to the investigation into disgraced former Politburo member Sun Zhengcai have been detained, according to sources and media reports.
Duan Weihong, a 49-year-old Tianjin native, was in custody and had been uncontactable “for a considerable period”, sources said.
Liu Fengzhou, a 55-year-old Beijing businesswoman and art collector, was detained in May, and Huang Suzhi, from Jiangsu, had been held since April, according to Chinese news outlet Caixin.
Tianjin prosecutors charged Sun, once seen as a contender for the innermost Politburo Standing Committee, with bribery on Tuesday, following his fall from grace in July ahead of the Communist Party’s five-yearly top reshuffle in October.
Duan, also know as Whitney Duan, was one of the central figures in a 2012 investigation by The New York Times surrounding the wealth of the relatives of then premier Wen Jiabao, whose family members rejected the report. The US newspaper first reported Duan’s detention last week.
