He was in office during the Covid-19 period: Prison sentence for the former mayor of Wuhan

Cou Xiangvang, the then mayor of the city of Wuhan, where the first cases of the Covid-19 epidemic were seen in China, was sentenced to 14 years in prison in the case where he was tried on corruption charges.

In the case held in Shangchiu city of Khnan province, the court ruled that Cou received money and real estate worth 60.5 million yuan ($9 million) as bribes between 2003 and 2025, when he served as a manager at different levels in Hubei province.

The court sentenced Cou to 14 years in prison and a fine of 5 million yuan ($750 thousand) for bribery.

It was stated that Cou confessed his crimes and returned the ill-gotten assets, so his sentence was commuted.

Cou, who served as a manager at different levels in his native Hubey province throughout his career, became the Communist Party Deputy Secretary and Mayor of the city of Wuhan, the administrative center of the province, in 2018.

Cou, who was on duty during the Covid-19 epidemic, was criticized along with other senior managers for errors and negligence in taking the epidemic under early control and informing the public.

In addition to Cou, corruption investigations were also launched against former Hubey Communist Party Secretary Jiang Chaoliang and former Hubey Governor Wang Xiaodong, who were the governors of the province at that time.

Ciang was sentenced to death with a 2-year postponement in the case where he was tried on bribery charges.