China official won't appeal jail term

Beijing: Shanghai's disgraced Communist Party chief, jailed for 18 years this month for corruption, has decided not to appeal, according to state media.

Chen Liangyu was found guilty of taking bribes and abuse of power by a court on April 11, becoming the most senior Chinese official imprisoned for graft in a decade. He had been held since 2006.

Chen, 61, was mired in a snowballing scandal over the misuse of social security funds in China's financial hub. More than a dozen senior officials and businessmen have been implicated.

He is accused of illegally authorising the lending of more than 2 billion yuan (Dh 1 billion) of the funds to two companies. Prosecutors also accused him of taking 2.4 million yuan (Dh 1.26 million) in bribes.