China mayor calls mafia crackdown a success

A sprawling crackdown on the violent underworld in one of China's biggest cities that riveted the country with tales of gangland corruption has been a success, the city's mayor said Tuesday.

The crackdown in the southwestern city of Chongqing exposed deep links between government officials and police officers who provided cover for crime syndicates. The trail led as high as the former director of the city's judicial department, who was executed after convictions on a number of corruption charges.

The campaign in the city of 32 million began last year and has led to thousands of arrests and trials that have captivated the public with lurid testimony about sex, corruption and gangland violence.

"We strictly enforced the law, and we achieved great success," Mayor Huang Qifan told reporters Tuesday. The campaign "effectively improved the stability and safety in Chongqing."

Huang said about 530 people were prosecuted and 370 sentenced, while more than 500 murder cases were investigated. He said more than 100 government officials were investigated, including police, prosecutors and members of the court.

The focus on officials had "effectively punished the protective umbrellas, or shields for gangsters," he said.

In late July, authorities announced the arrest of a former deputy of Chongqing's legislative body, Wang Neng, on charges of assault, possession of guns, extortion and organizing a gang. More than 20 alleged members of his gang also were arrested or detained.

Earlier this month, the former director of the Chongqing Municipal Judicial Bureau, Wen Qiang, was executed after conviction on charges involving bribery, rape, extortion and gang-related activities.

Wen was also accused of protecting the gang operations masterminded by his sister-in-law, Xie Caiping, known as the "godmother" of the Chongqing underworld. Xie was sentenced to 18 years in prison in November for running illegal casinos and bribing government officials.

Despite the progress made in busting gangsters, Huang said there is still work to be done.

"There will be new cases emerging in the future, so there is no way to say that our efforts are over," he said.