The graft case of a popular former news anchor of China Central Television (CCTV) will soon be heard, reports said.
Rui Chenggang's case is among 34 corruption-related cases at CCTV, and 29 of them have been assigned to judicial organs in Northeast China's Jilin Province, Beijing-based weekly newspaper China Business Journal reported Tuesday, citing an anonymous source close to the provincial judicial agencies.
Rui, a popular host of financial and news programs on CCTV, was taken away by prosecutors on July 11, 2014 together with Li Yong, deputy director of the business channel and another unnamed producer, following the detention of Guo Zhenxi, director of CCTV's business channel, for allegedly receiving bribes in June 2014, news site caixin.com reported.
At least 10 CCTV employees were reportedly involved in corruption that year.
Investigations into CCTV corruption cases allegedly often involved movie stars whom police sought to assist in the investigation, said the newspaper, which has removed the article from its website as of press time.
Rui, 36, joined CCTV's English Channel in 2003 and has been no stranger to controversy. He published two books on his successful life and made the rounds of the university speaking circuit.
He became a household name in China for his nationalistic stance, describing the opening of a Starbucks inside Beijing's Forbidden City as "erosion to Chinese culture" in 2007. Rui later caused a stir when he claimed to "represent the entire Asia" when trying to raise a question with US President Barack Obama during a
G20 summit in 2010.