Ma Xingrui, a former member of one of China's most influential decision-making bodies, has been formally charged with accepting bribes, state media reported Thursday. The charges come a week after Communist Party leaders confirmed his expulsion from the party.
Prosecutors in Yichang, Hubei province, accuse Ma of using his leadership positions to accept "exceptionally large" bribes and to secure benefits for others, while also accepting financial assets for himself, according to Xinhua news agency.
Ma was appointed to the Politburo in 2022. His downfall became public in April when authorities announced he was under investigation for severe violations of party discipline and national laws, though details were not provided at the time. He held leadership roles at China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, which is involved in the country's space program, and served as the party secretary of Shenzhen, a major technology hub.
He is the latest senior official implicated in Chinese leader Xi Jinping's ongoing anti-corruption campaign. This initiative was recently reinforced during a closed-door meeting of the Central Committee's fifth plenum, where leaders adopted a resolution to strengthen discipline and combat corruption. During this meeting, more than 30 senior officials, including Ma and the army's top general until early this year, were ratified for expulsion from the party. Prior to recent purges, the Politburo comprised 24 members; Ma and two military generals were among those removed.
Analysts suggest that the anti-corruption campaign serves as a mechanism to enforce loyalty to Xi and to eradicate corruption within the party ranks. Ma previously served as the Communist Party chief of the Xinjiang region until 2025 and before that as the governor of Guangdong province, a manufacturing hub bordering Hong Kong. In the Chinese political system, the party leader holds a rank above the governor in a province or region.