Ex-police chief spent one day in US consulate, China says

Feb 10, 2012, 2:29 GMT

Beijing - A former police chief spent one day in a US consulate in the south-western city of Chengdu, the Chinese government said on Friday, following unconfirmed reports that he sought asylum in the compound.

'Chongqing Vice Mayor Wang Lijun entered the US consulate in Chengdu on February 6 and left after one day. Relevant departments are now investigating this,' the Foreign Ministry said in a statement carried by state media.

Wang had led a much-praised but controversial campaign against organized crime and official corruption in the nearby city of Chongqing until February 2, when the local government announced his reassignment to civilian duties.

He was brought to the city by Bo Xilai, Chongqing's Communist Party secretary, after state media dubbed him a 'super cop' for his anti-mafia exploits in other cities.

A Twitter post on Wednesday by artist and activist Ai Weiwei quoted an unidentified 'reliable American lawyer' as saying Wang had requested asylum at the US consulate.

US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland confirmed that Wang met US officials in Chendgu 'in his capacity as vice mayor' and that he 'later left the consulate of his own volition.' Nuland declined to say if Wang had requested asylum.

Ai and others speculated that US officials would be unwilling to grant asylum to Wang because of the potential diplomatic fallout before a scheduled visit to Washington by Vice President Xi Jinping next week.

An oddly worded statement by the Chongqing city government on Wednesday said 'it was reported' that Wang was 'receiving vacation-style treatment' for stress and exhaustion caused by overwork.

The city's anti-mafia campaign resulted in the arrests of thousands of suspects in the last three years. About 2,000 people faced trial, including 77 officials who had protected criminal gangs, according to official reports.

Dozens received the death penalty during the campaign, including Wen Qiang, the former deputy police chief and head of the city's justice department.

But some insiders claimed that organized crime remained entrenched and still reached to the highest levels in the sprawling conurbation of 32 million people, while critics said the crackdown was too draconian.

Before the crackdown, Chongqing was reportedly one of China's biggest centres for weapons trafficking, while the gangs also controlled prostitution, gambling, drugs, entertainment and many local businesses, including one city bus company.

Bo is a junior member of the Communist Party's 25-member Politburo and has been tipped to break into its all-powerful, nine-member Standing Committee after a party congress in November.

Xi Jinping is widely expected to succeed President Hu Jintao as party leader following the congress.

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