CHINA: SUSPENDED DEATH PENALTY FOR SINOPEC EX-CHIEF

the former head of Chinese oil giant Sinopec, Chen Tonghai, 60, was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve in a corruption case involving millions of dollars, Chinese state press reported. A Beijing intermediate court handed down the sentence after finding Chen guilty of graft amounting to 195.7 million yuan (US$28.8 million) from 1999 to 2007. Chen was also convicted of illegally appropriating funds from projects and land transfers during the period.