Chinese authorities have blocked or seized assets worth at least 90 billion yuan ($14.5 billion) from family members and associates of the former security chief Zhou Yongkang who is at the center of the biggest corruption scandal in more than sixty years.
More than 300 relatives of Zhou, political allies and staff were detained and interrogated in the past four months, said two sources close to the situation.
The investigation may be a political revenge after Zhou has expressed his opposition to the removal of former senior politician Bo Xilai, who was sentenced in September to life in prison for corruption and abuse of power.
Zhou, aged 71, has been under house arrest since the end of last year. He is the highest ranked Chinese politician investigated for corruption since the Communist Party came to power in 1949.
“This is the worst event in the history of new China,” said one of the sources close to the authorities.
The government has made no official announcement about the investigation, and Zhou, his family, associates and staff could not be contacted. It is not clear if they have lawyers to represent them.
In the Communist Party’s secretive world, people investigated often disappear for months or years before any official announcement is made.
Chinese president Xi Jinping urged the establishment of a committee in late November – early December to analyze charges against Zhou. The charges are not known yet, besides the fact that they are related to violation of party discipline.
Zhou made a career in the oil and gas before entering the Politburo elite in 2007 as head of the internal security, with a higher budget than the defense. He retired in 2012.
Two sources said that the prosecution and anti-corruption authorities have frozen bank accounts and deposits amounting to 37 billion yuan ($5 billion) and blocked foreign bonds and stock with a combined value of 51 billion yuan (over $7 billion) after they raided homes in Beijing, Shanghai and five provinces.
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