Former court president 'connived with criminal underworld'

Ren Yongfei, former president of Yangpu District’s court, was prosecuted by the city’s procuratorate on charges of taking bribes and conniving with the criminal underworld on Friday.

After being investigated by the city's discipline inspection and supervision authority in October of last year, the 57-year-old former official was expelled from the Communist Party of China and dismissed from public office, the authority said in May.

The authority announced on its official website that Ren had helped the underworld.

It added that he also took advantage of his position to help others such as his relatives and merchants with financing, project contracting and employment, and sought bribes from them.

Ren was arrested in June, according to the Second Branch of the People’s Procuratorate of Shanghai.

Not date for the hearing has been set, Shanghai’s No. 2 Intermediate People’s Court said.