40 names checked off China's list of most wanted for graft

40 out of China's 100 most wanted overseas economic fugitives have been repatriated or returned to China in the past two years from different countries and regions around the world.

The list of the 100 most wanted overseas fugitives issued with red-warrants. [File photo: 163.com]

The "100 Most Wanted" list was issued with red-warrants by the China National Central Bureau of Interpol in 2015. Until recently, six were arrested, seven repatriated, two dead and 25 have been persuaded to return.

Of the 40 fugitives, 26 are suspected to have been involved in corruption and accepting bribes; others are under arrest for fraud and abusing official power.

China's most wanted fugitive Yang Xiuzhu, a former vice mayor of Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, is considered the biggest catch. Yang fled abroad in 2003 after being accused of collecting 250 million yuan (USD 36 million) in bribes.

Yang Xiuzhu (C), No.1 on China's  100 most wanted fugitives red notice, is taking off the flight by police officers after she returned to China on Nov. 16, 2016. [File photo: baidu.com]

She gave up an asylum application in the United States last year and turned herself over to the Chinese police last November.

Currently, China has built legal collaboration mechanisms with United States, Canada, New Zealand and Australia, facilitating fugitive pursuits in these countries.

The G20 Summit in Hangzhou last September saw an agreement signed to enhance cross-border anti-corruption cooperation, which was aimed at facilitating the establishment of mutual extradition treaties and legal assistance regarding fugitive repatriations.

Research Center on Cooperation Regarding Persons Sought for Corruption and Asset Recovery in G20 Member States is founded during G20 meeting in Hangzhou on September 23, 2016. [File photo: ifeng.com]

An official of China's Central Commission of Discipline Inspection said chances for fugitives to stay overseas are now thinner and thinner. "Anti-corruption has become a common language internationally, however big or small it is," he said.

A recent anti-corruption documentary revealed the real lives of overseas fugitives. Some fugitives used up all the embezzled money abroad, struggling to survive while not being able to speak the local language.

Some could not even return home following the death of a parent. Some kept fleeing from one country to another while living in panic.

In the documentary, a fugitive who fled to the United States didn't even dare to see doctors after falling ill. In a written statement after surrendering to the Chinese police, the fugitive said he preferred to be sentenced in a Chinese jail rather than living a tragic life abroad.