Communist Party expels ex-security chief

The Xinhua state news agency reported that China's former security chief, Zhou Yongkang, had been expelled from the Communist Party.

The Chinese official was also arrested as part of an investigation launched by the party in July.

Zhou was one of nine leaders in the Communist Party's ruling inner circle until his retirement in 2012 following allegations of serious violations of party discipline.

Xinhua said the decision had been made on Friday at a meeting of the Political Bureau of the party's Central Committee.

It was also decided to transfer Zhou's "suspected criminal case ... and relevant clues to judicial organs for handling according to the law," the agency reported in a short bulletin published just after midnight on Saturday local time.

The 71-year-old had been accused of crimes ranging from accepting bribes to leaking state secrets.

Zhou is one of the highest-profile figures caught up in Chinese President Xi Jinping's crackdown on corruption.

He is also the most senior Chinese official to be accused of abusing his power to dishonestly obtain money since the Communists swept to power in 1949.

"The investigation found that Zhou seriously violated the party's political, organizational and confidentiality discipline," the Xinhua news agency confirmed. "He took advantage of his posts to seek profits for others and accepted huge bribes personally and through his family."

"He abused his power to help relatives, mistresses and friends make huge profits from operating businesses, resulting in serious losses of state-owned assets," the state news outlet continued.

Damage to Communist Party

Xinhua also reported that Zhou had committed adultery with a number of women and had "traded his power for sex and money." Communist Party members are banned from keeping mistresses.

The Chinese state news agency reported that Zhou's "behavior badly undermined the reputation of the party, significantly damaged the cause of the party and the people, and had serious consequences."

Zhou was a member of the Politburo Standing Committee - China's apex of power - and held the post of security czar until he retired in 2012. He was last seen in public over a year ago.

It is unclear whether Zhou will attend an open trial as the party could run the risk of the threat of state secrets being revealed in public.

lw/mkg (AP, AFP)