China sex tape official loses appeal
A southern Chinese court has upheld a guilty verdict and sentence against a former city official at the heart of a sex tape scandal, the Boston Herald reports.
Lei Zhengfu was convicted in June of accepting more than 3 million yuan ($500,000) in bribes from a developer to pay off a businessman who was using the tape to blackmail him. He subsequently appealed.
The Chongqing High Court on Tuesday said it upheld Lei's 13-year prison sentence and the seizure of 300,000 yuan of his assets along with the bribes he took.
Lei is a former party chief of a district in the southern city of Chongqing. His case has riveted the public since video clips went viral of him having sex with a woman who had been hired by developers in an extortion scheme.