The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection published a brief statement on its website saying Liu, 60, was “undergoing disciplinary review and supervisory investigation” and was “suspected of serious violations of discipline and law” – a euphemism for corruption.
The statement did not give further details.
Liu was vice-minister at China’s justice ministry from January 2016 to June 2023.
He studied as an English major in Beijing in the early 1980s, then spent more than three decades in police-related foreign affairs positions before moving to the Ministry of Justice, public records show.
Liu started as a junior staff member at the Ministry of Public Security’s foreign affairs bureau in 1984 and rose through the ranks in its European and American affairs division.
In 1991-92, Liu was sent by the Chinese government to study police science and criminal justice at the University of Exeter in Britain where he earned a master’s degree.
He became deputy foreign affairs bureau chief in the public security ministry from 1999 to 2004. It overlapped with a stint from 2000 to 2003 as a member of the executive committee of the International Criminal Police Organisation, known as Interpol. The Lyon-based intergovernmental body allows police from different countries – including between countries that do not share diplomatic relations – to work together to tackle crime.
Man behind China’s first approved Covid-19 shot loses seat in legislature
Man behind China’s first approved Covid-19 shot loses seat in legislature
He was promoted to foreign affairs bureau chief for the Ministry of Public Security in 2004, and in 2005 headed its international cooperation bureau.
Liu left Beijing in 2012 for China’s northwest Qinghai province where he led the provincial public security department and served as vice-provincial governor before returning to the Ministry of Justice in 2016.
The investigation into Liu comes as Chinese President Xi Jinping promotes a resolute crackdown on the country’s security and law enforcement apparatus, a campaign has been described as “turning the blade inward”. Hundreds of senior officials at a ministerial level have been brought down as Xi’s signature anti-corruption campaign enters its 11th year.
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China executes scientist for spying in 2016, among 10 ‘shocking’ cases revealed in documentary
China executes scientist for spying in 2016, among 10 ‘shocking’ cases revealed in documentary
