Zheng Guoliang, former deputy to the Anhui Provincial People's
Congress in east China, was sentenced to death with a two-year
reprieve for drug smuggling and illegal gun possession, confirmed
local sources on Sunday.
Zheng, 51, was arrested in May in Linquan county, Fuyang city in
northwest Anhui as he attempted to conceal and smuggle 339.5 grams
of heroin and 39.1 grams of morphine by mixing the drugs with
tea.
Police also seized a hunting rifle and four bullets in his
home.
The Fuyang Intermediate People's Court sentenced Zheng to death
with a two-year reprieve and confiscated his illegal assets.
Zheng Xuwen and Jiang Xiuying, accessories in the drug
smuggling, were sentenced to life imprisonment and a seven-year
jail term, respectively.
Zheng Guoliang was a farmer in Yingxian township, Linquan
county, who was elected deputy to the 10th Anhui Provincial
People's Congress in 2003 for helping farmers to become
affluent.
He was expelled from the congress on June 29 this year.
(Xinhua News Agency November 26, 2007)