In order to "secure" the channel for winter heating coal supply of a property management company, Shanxi coal merchant Wang Lei (a pseudonym) had been continuously "paying tribute" for five years. Both the powerful manager of the state-owned property management company and the small boiler team leader became targets of his "respect."
With just a less-than-50-word anonymous tip-off letter, anti-graft bureau investigators ultimately sentenced six corrupt officials and one briber.
What was written in this crucial anonymous letter? How did the investigators find clues from it? Recently, Wang Jianming, director of the Anti-Graft Bureau of the Fangshan District Procuratorate, and the case-handling prosecutor told the story behind this case.
The Origin: An Anonymous Letter with Only 50 Words But High Credibility
On April 13, 2006, Wang Jianming, director of the Anti-Graft Bureau of the Fangshan District Procuratorate, received an anonymous letter as soon as he started work.
The letter read: "When a property management company purchases heating coal, the manager Wang Mou, deputy manager Hu Mou, and boiler team leader Zhang Mou accept bribes of money, cars, and houses from suppliers."
After analyzing the anonymous letter, the prosecutors believed that the property management company being reported has a large winter heating area and buys a large amount of coal.
Secondly, although property management companies seem unremarkable, decisions on whether to purchase coal, and what kind of coal to buy, might be decided by one person. The credibility of these 50 words was very high.
Finding Clues in Combustion Values: A "Covert" Investigation into Bribery
Investigators first began their investigation based on the content of the letter, starting with the vehicles and properties of the three reported individuals.
After the investigation, it was found that not only did the property management company's manager Wang Mou own a private car, but he also bought a house in Beijing's urban area and had a significant amount of savings, which did not match his personal salary income.
It seemed like the case was starting to take shape, but who should they investigate first?
"Investigating cases is all about knowledge," Wang Jianming explained. To prevent the bribe-takers from tampering with accounts, the special investigation team decided to start investigating the coal merchants who offered bribes.
According to reports, when signing coal purchase contracts, coal merchants must provide the combustion value of the coal. This value is issued by the Quality Inspection Institute under each district's Quality Supervision Bureau.
"There is also knowledge here. You can't just go to the inspection institute and say you want to check a specific company. Who knows if there will be someone leaking information?" Wang Jianming said, "Investigating cases is like the TV series 'Covert Affairs,' where every step must be correct."
Thus, the investigators provided the quality supervision bureau with four or five companies using coal, and the property management company was "hidden" among them. In the coal purchase contract of this company, the name of the coal merchant was Wang Lei, along with his contact information.
Staking Out Two Neighborhoods, Missing the Briber
Directly calling him? Definitely not feasible.
Ultimately, the investigators discovered from Wang Lei's call records that he called two landline numbers every day. One was located in a community in Beiqi, Changping District, and the other was in a community in Liangxiang, Fangshan District.
At the same time, the investigators obtained Wang Lei's photo from the household registration data.
Which place was Wang Lei's home?
The investigators had no choice but to set up surveillance at both locations. Outside the Beiqi neighborhood in Changping, the investigators hid in their car, observing every person entering and leaving the community. However, after three consecutive days, they came up empty-handed.
As for the Liangxiang neighborhood in Fangshan, because it was too close to the procuratorate, to avoid meeting acquaintances, the investigators could only conduct nighttime surveillance. The investigators used binoculars to observe from the hallway of the building opposite Wang Lei's home for three days, but there was always only one woman inside.
On the fifth day of surveillance, the lead investigator, Prosecutor Yin Hui, suddenly saw Wang Lei walking out of the building while strolling around the neighborhood.
"At that moment, a man with a child walked towards me, and I was very familiar with that face," said Yin Hui. Finally seeing Wang Lei, but before understanding the specific situation, Yin Hui could only let him pass by.
Temporary Detour to Send Daughter, Investigators Almost Missed Their Target
In the following few days of surveillance, the investigators figured out Wang Lei's movement patterns.
Wang Lei returned to Changping every day, where a mother and daughter lived. He went to Fangshan once a week, where only one woman resided.
During one tracking session, the investigators found that Wang Lei went to a yard near Lulihe in Fangshan.
Could this be his business location? The investigators pretended to use the restroom and entered the yard, indeed seeing Wang Lei directing people to work inside.
To avoid alarming the bribe-takers, the special investigation team decided to carry out the arrest on Wang Lei's way to work.
At around 6 a.m. on June 29, 2006, the investigators arrived at Wang Lei's residence in Changping.
Previously, Wang Lei should have left for work around 7:30 a.m. But that day, after circling around, the investigators didn't see his green Geely car. At 7:40 a.m., the woman living with Wang Lei left the neighborhood alone.
The investigators immediately reported this situation to Wang Jianming. Upon hearing the news, Wang Jianming immediately drove to Wang Lei's residence in Fangshan, but still didn't see his car.
Had the wind leaked out? While pondering, Wang Jianming saw a green Geely car drive to the building from afar, followed by Wang Lei getting out of the car. When Wang Lei left the neighborhood, the investigators drove to intercept him.
The investigators later learned that that morning, Wang Lei had temporarily gone to send his daughter, so he left earlier than usual. After sending his daughter and finding it early, Wang Lei decided to return to his home in Fangshan. There, he met the police waiting to arrest him.
Refusing to Admit Guilt, Became Nervous When Hearing Partner's Name
At the procuratorate, Wang Lei outright denied ever bribing anyone from the property management company.
The prosecutors were not in a hurry, just slowly chatting with him. Suddenly, a prosecutor asked, "Of the two women in Changping and Fangshan, which one is your wife?"
Upon hearing this, Wang Lei froze, and after a long pause, he finally admitted. Subsequently, three bribe-takers from the property management company were "invited" to the procuratorate.
Faced with questioning, these three either remained silent or cried injustice. To make them tell the truth, the case handlers decided to stage a good play.
One night, the prosecutors arranged the rooms for questioning these three on the same floor. When each went to the bathroom, the prosecutors deliberately shouted their names in the hallway, allowing the other two sitting in the room to hear.
"The aim was to hint to them that everyone had been caught, and whoever spoke first would gain the initiative," Wang Jianming said.
This trick worked, and the property management company's manager Wang Mou and boiler team leader Zhang Mou quickly admitted to accepting bribes. However, the deputy manager Hu Mou only admitted to traveling abroad under Wang Lei's arrangement, claiming the total expenses were less than 30,000 yuan, denying everything else.
According to regulations, the prosecution can detain suspects for a maximum of 14 days, and if there is no evidence, they must release them. Time was running out, how could they find evidence?
Proficient in Computers, Hiding Account Files
For several consecutive days of interrogations, Hu Mou insisted he never received any money from Wang Mou.
When the prosecutor searched Hu Mou's office again, they suddenly thought that Hu Mou was proficient in computers. Could he have hidden some files? Sure enough, the prosecutor found two hidden files on Hu Mou's computer, containing a list of all his family's bank account numbers and card numbers.
An investigation revealed that on December 8, 2005, Hu Mou deposited 210,000 yuan under his own name into the account of "Wang Yuhui."
With just one day left before the detention period expired, the prosecutor interrogated Hu Mou again. When the prosecutor suddenly placed a piece of paper in front of him, Hu Mou was stunned.
Hu Mou eventually confessed that all the money in the account was given by Wang Mou. Because he feared opening such a large account under his own name would not be "safe," he borrowed his brother-in-law's ID and opened another account.
On July 14, 2006, the procuratorate decided to arrest the three for suspected bribery.
Bribe-Takers Exposed Three More Corrupt Officials
Subsequent interrogations proceeded exceptionally smoothly, and the three also voluntarily exposed three other bribe-takers. Manager Wang Mou pointed out the nearly retired party secretary Tian Mou of the company. Deputy Manager Hu Mou exposed the director of the district municipal committee's heating office, Han Mou.
At the same time, Wang Mou also exposed the director of the Comprehensive Planning Department, Liu Li (a pseudonym). After checking, the property management company had issued a 500,000 yuan check to Liu Li, which eventually entered the account of another company. The vice general manager of this company, Liang Bing, was none other than Liu Li's husband.
However, during the first contact, Liang Bing answered all the prosecutor's questions with "I don't know." But when the prosecutor handcuffed himself in front of Liu Li, seeing her become anxious, Liang Bing couldn't hold out anymore.
Recently, the case involving Liu Li was sentenced, concluding this rare case where a single coal merchant's bribery led to the downfall of six corrupt officials.
Written by reporters Hong Xue and Sun Huili of the Lisa Investigation Studio.
Wang Mou, Property Management Company Manager, Bribery of 155,000 yuan, Sentenced to 12 Years Imprisonment.
Wang Lei, Individual Coal Merchant, Bribery Crime, Sentenced to 3 Years Imprisonment, Suspended for 3 Years.
Liu Li, Director of the Comprehensive Planning Department, Embezzlement of 500,000 yuan, Sentenced to 11 Years Imprisonment.
Tian Mou, Secretary of the Party Branch of the Property Management Company, Embezzlement of 50,000 yuan, Sentenced to 3 Years Imprisonment, Suspended for 3 Years.
Liang Bing, Sheltering His Wife, Transferred to Public Security Authorities for Handling.
Hu Mou, Deputy Manager of the Property Management Company, Bribery of 280,000 yuan, Sentenced to 9 Years Imprisonment.
Han Mou, Director of a Heating Office in Beijing, Bribery Crime, Sentenced to 3 Years Imprisonment, Suspended for 3 Years.
Zhang Mou, Boiler Team Leader of the Property Management Company, Bribery of 123,000 yuan, Sentenced to 10 Years Imprisonment.
Diagram of the Bribery Nest Case