Bo Xilai trial: Investigation phase concludes, verdict nears

August 25, 2013 03:37 pm | Updated November 16, 2021 11:12 pm IST

In this image taken from video, former Chinese politician Bo Xilai reads in a court room at Jinan Intermediate People's Court in Jinan, eastern China's Shandong province on Sunday.

In this image taken from video, former Chinese politician Bo Xilai reads in a court room at Jinan Intermediate People's Court in Jinan, eastern China's Shandong province on Sunday.

The trial of former Politburo member Bo Xilai on Sunday moved closer to its conclusion as the court in northeastern China completed the investigation phase of the case following the key testimony of Wang Lijun, Mr. Bo’s police chief in Chongqing.

Mr. Bo strongly refuted the allegations made by Mr. Wang on Saturday – the third day of the trial – describing his once right-hand-man as “a vile character”. Mr. Wang had on Saturday detailed the chain of events following the murder of British businessman Neil Heywood, who was poisoned by Gu Kailai, Mr. Bo’s wife. He accused Mr. Bo of punching him, threatening investigators and covering up the case.

The former Politburo member and Party “princeling” is facing charges of abuse of power, related to the cover-up, and also of bribery and embezzlement. On Friday, Mr. Bo mounted a strong defence against the corruption charges, saying he was unaware of his family's dealings with businessmen close to his wife and son.

Mr. Bo on Sunday described Mr. Wang’s testimony as “totally unreliable” and “full of deception”, according to a transcript posted by the Jinan court on its microblog, which, for the fourth day, provided updated from the proceedings.

Regarding Mr. Wang’s claim that his former boss had punched and threatened him, forcing him to seek refuge in a U.S. Consulate in Chengdu — a decision that brought the scandal into the open, embarrassed the Communist Party and derailed the former Chongqing Party Secretary's once bright leadership prospects — Mr. Bo said, “I have never learned how to box and have no great strength to strike someone.”

As the court adjourned on Sunday morning, the State-run Xinhua news agency said the investigations phase of the proceedings had concluded. The trial will resume on Monday, with a verdict expected early next week.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.