A former Nanjing city official, Yang Youlin, received a death sentence for accepting over 2.2 billion yuan ($325 million) in bribes across three decades. Yang, who held various economic and technological development roles from 1993 to 2023, exploited his positions to facilitate engineering contracts, land transfers, and financing for individuals in exchange for money and valuables.

His conviction also includes charges of embezzlement, abuse of power, and money laundering. The court cited the "extremely serious nature" of his offenses and the "exceptionally heavy losses" to the state, deeming his actions too grave for a lenient sentence despite his guilty plea and expression of remorse.

This sentencing occurs within President Xi Jinping's extensive anti-corruption campaign. While death sentences for white-collar crimes are uncommon, they are imposed for cases involving sums exceeding 1 billion yuan. The case underscores the severe penalties for corruption involving substantial financial sums, even in non-violent offenses.