China will announce a judgement on Monday in the case against an ex-police chief who set off a political scandal that riled the Communist Party and brought down top politician Bo Xilai.
Court officials in the central city of Chengdu on Friday announced the verdict date for Wang Lijun, who was tried earlier this week on charges of defection, abuse of power, bribe-taking, and bending the law for selfish ends.
Wang fled to the U.S. consulate in Chengdu in February, where he told American diplomats that Bo's wife, Gu Kailai, had murdered a British businessman over a business dispute. Gu was later convicted of the murder, while Bo was stripped of his party posts.
The official Xinhua news agency says Wang did not object to the charges during the tightly-orchestrated two-day trial, which was closed to foreign media. Observers say Wang is likely to be found guilty on all charges.
In Xinhua's official account of the trial, prosecutors accused Wang of initially covering up Gu's involvement in the murder of Neil Heywood. They also said he applied for political asylum at the U.S. consulate before surrendering to Chinese police.
After his alleged defection attempt failed, Wang reportedly re-opened the investigation into Heywood's death and cooperated with authorities. Because of this, prosecutors suggested that he receive a more lenient sentence.
But the account of the trial also shed possible light on the fate of Bo, who was considered a rising star in Chinese politics. Although the report did not specifically mention Bo's name, it suggested that the local Communist party's “main responsible person at the time” knew about Gu's possible involvement in the murder, but did nothing.
Some observers say that the small reference could implicate Bo in the crime, meaning he could face criminal charges. Bo has not been seen or heard from in months and is under investigation by the party for “serious” violations of discipline.
The scandal came at a particularly sensitive time for the Communist party, which is preparing to hand over power to a new generation of leaders at the 18th Party Congress that is expected to be held in just weeks.
