China accuses former Interpol chief Meng Hongwei of taking bribes
Ministry of Public Security announces task force will target associates and adds that Meng’s ‘insistence on doing things his own way means he only has himself to blame’
China has accused the former Interpol president and its vice-minister of public security Meng Hongwei of taking bribes and detained him for investigation.
A statement on the Ministry of Public Security’s website on Monday also said police would form a task force to go after Meng’s associates, adding that his “insistence on doing things in his own way means he has only himself to blame for being placed under investigation”.
Meng’s case is now in the hands of the country’s new and powerful super-anticorruption agency, the National Supervisory Commission (NSC).
The Chinese foreign ministry rejected the suggestion that China’s image abroad would be harmed by Beijing’s handling of the probe of Meng.
Analysts said Beijing would have been well aware of the risks before deciding to act, but the fact the detention went ahead regardless gives an indication of the high stakes involved.
The acting president of Interpol, Kim Jong Yang, told Associated Press on Monday that it had not been told about the investigation of its chief.
“I find it regrettable that the top leader of the organisation had to go out this way and that we weren’t specifically notified of what was happening in advance,” Kim said in a phone interview.
