"At Center of Controversy During COVID-19 Outbreak"... Former Chinese Wuhan Mayor Sentenced to 14 Years for Taking 12.1 Billion Won in Bribes

Former Mayor Zhou Xianwang Criticized for His Early COVID-19 Response
Received 12.1 Billion Won in Bribes for Business Favors

The former mayor of Wuhan, who was criticized for a poor response in the early days of the COVID-19 outbreak, has been sentenced to 14 years in prison for receiving large bribes.

Former Wuhan Mayor Zhou Xianwang was sentenced to 14 years in prison and fined 5 million yuan (about 1 billion won) by the Shangqiu Intermediate People's Court in Henan Province.

According to Hong Kong's South China Morning Post (SCMP) on October 11 (local time), the Shangqiu Intermediate People's Court in China's Henan Province sentenced Zhou Xianwang, former mayor of Wuhan, to 14 years in prison and fined him 5 million yuan (about 1 billion won) on bribery charges.

An investigation found that Zhou, who served in roles including secretary of the Huangshi Municipal Party Committee in Hubei Province, mayor of Wuhan, and vice governor of Hubei Province from 2003 to 2025, provided companies and individuals with favors related to winning business contracts, corporate operations, and administrative approvals. In return, he received more than 60.5 million yuan (about 12.1 billion won) in bribes, including cash and real estate.

The court heard the case in July 2026 and found him guilty, ruling that the amount of bribes was substantial. However, it reduced his sentence in consideration of Zhou's confession and his return of the illegally acquired assets.

Zhou began facing an investigation in July 2025 by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the Chinese Communist Party's top anti-corruption watchdog.

Zhou, who is from Hubei Province, worked his way up through local government before being appointed deputy secretary of the Wuhan Municipal Party Committee, the provincial capital, in May 2018. He became mayor of Wuhan in September that year.

COVID-19 was first detected in Wuhan in late December 2019, while he was mayor. City authorities were sharply criticized for disclosing information about the outbreak only belatedly.

Wuhan did not begin a citywide lockdown until late January 2020, three days after China's State Council held a meeting emphasizing local governments' responsibility for epidemic prevention and control in their jurisdictions. In an interview with state-run China Central Television (CCTV) at the time, Zhou explained, "As a local government official, I can only make an announcement after receiving the information and approval to disclose it."

He also maintained that there had been nothing wrong with allowing a Chinese New Year event attended by 40,000 people to go ahead, despite criticism that it contributed to the spread of COVID-19.

Zhou said at the time, alongside Ma Guoqiang, then secretary of the Wuhan Municipal Party Committee, that if the spread of COVID-19 were brought under control, he would "willingly resign to appease public opinion."

Ma was dismissed in February 2020 along with Jiang Chaoliang, then secretary of the Hubei Provincial Party Committee. Zhou, by contrast, remained mayor until 2021, when he resigned. He later served on the provincial-level and National Committees of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, China's top political advisory body.

Jiang, the former provincial party chief, was also convicted of bribery and received a suspended death sentence in August 2026. In an anti-corruption documentary aired by CCTV earlier in 2026, he admitted to accepting money and gifts from businesspeople for more than 10 years in exchange for providing them with favors.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.