The former Party chief of Chenzhou City in central China's Hunan Province has been accused of taking bribes totaling more than 14.34 million yuan, a provincial official said Wednesday.

Li Dalun, 57, who is being investigated, has also failed to account for another 17.65 million yuan, said Zhang Weiping, deputy secretary of the Hunan Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China (CPC) at a press conference on the province's anti-corruption work.

Li and his family members took the bribes from 1999 to 2006 when he was the secretary of Chenzhou City CPC Committee. In exchange, Li helped some local construction companies win bids on projects and gave promotions to some local officials, said Zhang, without further elaboration.

Zhang said his commission received reports in May last year that Li was suspected of taking huge bribes.

"The investigation is coming to the end and Li will go to court soon," said Zhang.

According to Zhang, Hunan procuratorial organs placed 7,505 cases on file for investigation for corruption, bribery and other job-related crimes in 2006 which saw 6,831 people prosecuted. Among them were 204 government officials above the county level.

(Xinhua News Agency April 12, 2007)