A postal bank official in southern China was sentenced to death Friday for siphoning off more than 1.3 billion yuan (190 million dollars) to pay off her gambling debts, state media reported. He Liqiong, 45, was given the death penalty by an intermediate court in Guangdong province for the crimes, which occurred between 2003 and 2005, Xinhua news agency said.
She was convicted of siphoning deposits from a post office bank in Foshan city to pay off debts incurred while gambling in casinos in neighbouring Macao, the former Portuguese colony, the report said.
He's chief accomplice was given a life sentence for involvement in the case, while four others were sentenced to up to five years in prison, the report said. Officials gambling away public funds in Macao has become a headache for China with a string of corruption incidents linked to gambling and money laundering recently reported in the state press.