Xinjiang court officials allegedly released suspect illegally

Two officials in Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region allegedly "released" a suspect before trial, China Youth Daily reported on Monday.

The Party chief of Aksu court, identified as Wang, and the court's disciplinary department head, surnamed Wu, took the suspect Jiang Shouhe on April 23, saying Jiang's father was critically ill, the paper said.

The suspect was facing a corruption trial at the time, according to the paper.

Wang said any release was a decision of the court leadership but this was contradicted by Zhang Yanbin, who once worked with the suspect and reported the release to the paper.

Zhang also alleged that the release did not conform to legal procedures, the paper said.

Now, judicial organs in Aksu city, in western Xinjiang, are investigating the case, and will publish their findings as soon as possible, the paper added.