Central Commission for Discipline Inspection State Supervision Commission website Liu Yilin
The picture shows the scene of the first-instance trial of the case of Qin Bin accepting bribes to shield and connive in a mafia-type organization on December 2, 2020. Photo by Pan Xiaodan
Special guests
Huang Min Is a fourth-level chief clerk of the Fifth Review and Investigation Office of the Laibin Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection
Li Peizhen deputy director of the case trial room of the Laibin Municipal Discipline Inspection Commission Supervision Commission
Wu Chunyan Deputy Procurator General of the Wuxuan County People's Procuratorate
Hong Yuting Vice President of the First Criminal Trial Division of the Laibin Intermediate People's Court
Editor's Note
This is a case in which the director of the public security bureau acted as an "umbrella" for a mafia-type organization and committed the crimes of harboring and conniving at a mafia-type organization and accepting bribes. In this case, Qin Bin committed both job-related crimes and other crimes, so how can the Supervision Organs, the public security organs, and other units coordinate and cooperate to ensure the smooth investigation and handling of the whole case? In the crime of harboring and conniving at a mafia-type organization, how to subjectively determine that Qin Bin knew that the mafia-type organization he was protecting was a mafia-type organization? Qin Bin acts as a "protective umbrella" for the main members of the mafia-type organization so that they will not be held criminally responsible, which is of a bad nature and the circumstances are serious, so why is the plea leniency system still applied to them? What are the main factors that the judicial organs consider when sentencing?
Basic facts of the case:
Qin Bin, male, born in May 1965, began his career in October 1984 and joined the Communist Party of China in June 1994. He once served as political commissar of the Xiangzhou County Public Security Bureau, deputy county magistrate of the Xiangzhou County People's Government, director of the county public security bureau, deputy secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission of the Laibin City Public Security Bureau, director of the Supervision Office, and head of the cult crime investigation detachment.
From 2009 to 2014, Qin Bin took advantage of his position as political commissar of the Xiangzhou County Public Security Bureau in Laibin City, deputy county magistrate of the Xiangzhou County People's Government, and director of the County Public Security Bureau to provide assistance to others in the contracting of project projects, the handling of cases lightly, the promotion of police posts (ranks), and the adjustment of posts, and accepted a total of 2.4948 million yuan in property from 28 people, including Tan.
As a people's policeman, Qin Bin has the responsibility to investigate and deal with illegal crimes, and knowing that the organization led by Tan XX is a mafia-type organization engaged in illegal and criminal activities, he still shields the illegal and criminal activities of the organization and its members, and connives at the illegal and criminal activities of the organization, so that the mafia-type organization headed by Tan XX continues to carry out illegal and criminal activities until 2019, resulting in the organization taking advantage of the momentum.
Investigation and punishment process:
【Case Filing Review and Investigation】After approval, in April 2020, the Laibin Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection decided to file a case for review and investigation of Qin Bin's suspected serious violations of discipline and laws, and adopted retention measures in accordance with law.
【Party Discipline and Government Sanctions】On July 28, 2020, Qin Bin was expelled from the party and dismissed from public office by the Laibin Municipal Discipline Inspection Commission for serious violations of discipline and law and suspected crimes; his proceeds of violations of discipline and laws were confiscated.
On July 28, 2020, the Laibin Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection and Supervision transferred Qin Bin's suspected crime of accepting bribes to the Wuxuan County People's Procuratorate for review and prosecution in accordance with law. Qin Bin's suspicion of harboring and conniving at a mafia-type organization was transferred for review and prosecution after the Investigation by the Wuxuan County Public Security Bureau was concluded.
On September 4, 2020, the Wuxuan County People's Procuratorate filed a public prosecution with the Wuxuan County People's Court on Qin Bin's suspicion of accepting bribes, and on November 10, 2020, qin Bin filed a public prosecution with the Wuxuan County People's Court on suspicion of harboring and conniving at a mafia-type organization.
【First-Instance Judgment】On December 31, 2020, the Wuxuan County People's Court rendered a first-instance judgment sentencing Qin Bin to six years' imprisonment and a fine of 500,000 yuan for accepting bribes; Qin Bin to six years' imprisonment for harboring and conniving at a mafia-type organization; and deciding to carry out a fixed-term imprisonment of 10 years and a fine of 500,000 yuan. Qin Bin was not satisfied and filed an appeal.
【Second-instance ruling】On March 19, 2021, the Laibin Intermediate People's Court made a final ruling: the appeal was rejected and the original judgment was upheld.
1. Qin Bin has committed both job-related crimes and other crimes, how can the Supervision Organs, public security organs and other units coordinate and cooperate to ensure the smooth investigation and handling of the whole case? What are the characteristics of this case?
Huang Min: At the end of 2019, the Laibin Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection set up a special case team to dig deep and thoroughly investigate the "protective umbrella" and corruption behind the triad-related criminal gang headed by Tan Moumou. In the course of the investigation, the Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection and supervision and the public security organs strengthened communication and coordination, and coordinated the public security organs to take measures of residential surveillance in designated residences against Tan and others. The Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection and Supervision focused on screening the "protective umbrella" behind Tan's case and the issue of bribery of public officials, and the public security organs immediately handed over the clues of the relevant problems to the Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection. After preliminary verification and grasping the facts of Qin Bin's suspected bribery, we took liuzhi measures against Qin Bin and further ascertained: Since 2004, the mafia-type organization headed by Tan Moumou has committed a number of crimes and dominated the party in Xiangzhou County. In August 2007, Qin Bin began to communicate with Tan Moumou after serving as the political commissar of the Xiangzhou County Public Security Bureau, and from 2009 to 2011, Tan Moumou gave Qin Bin a New Year's greeting before the Spring Festival every year, and gave Qin Bin a total of 20,000 yuan in red envelopes three times. From 2012 to 2014, in the case of Tan xxx and his gang members suspected of gathering crowds to fight and causing death, Qin Bin, then director of the Xiangzhou County Public Security Bureau, after accepting 200,000 yuan from Tan xxx three times, instructed others to modify and destroy the judicial appraisal report and not to further collect evidence of Tan xxx and others suspected of committing crimes, resulting in the procuratorate making a decision not to approve the arrest and non-prosecution of Tan xxx and others. At the same time, when Qin Bin was the political commissar of the Xiangzhou County Public Security Bureau, the deputy county magistrate of the county people's government, the director of the county public security bureau, and the secretary of the party committee of the county public security bureau, he knew that Tan xxx and others had committed crimes related to organized crimes but had not performed their duties of investigation and prohibition, indulged in the growth of Tan xx's gang involved in organized crime, and still shielded and helped Tan xx's gang evade criminal punishment after committing crimes, and his behavior was suspected of harboring and conniving at the crime of organizing a mafia-type organization.
According to the "Circular on Dividing Labor and Responsibility, Cooperating with Each Other, and Mutually Restraining public Employees in the Special Struggle to Eliminate Organized Crime and Eliminate Evil Forces and Severely Punishing Public Employees for Crimes Involving Criminal Syndicates and Evil Forces" (hereinafter referred to as the "Circular"), "In cases involving public employees involved in criminal syndicates and crimes related to evil forces, who are suspected of serious violations of the law or crimes abusing public office such as corruption, bribery, dereliction of duty, or crimes committed while also suspected of violations of the law or crimes under the jurisdiction of the public security organs and people's procuratorates, the Supervision Organs shall generally take the lead in the investigation, and the public security organs and people's procuratorates shall assist them." Based on the above provisions and the facts of Qin Bin's crime, we transferred qin bin's suspected crime of harboring and conniving at the crime of organizing a mafia to the Wuxuan County Public Security Bureau for investigation. Under the coordination of our committee, on July 21, 2020, the Wuxuan County Public Security Bureau filed a case against Qin Bin for the crime of harboring and conniving at a mafia-type organization, and the Wuxuan County Procuratorate initiated a public prosecution on November 10, 2020, ensuring that the people's court simultaneously tried Qin Bin's crime of accepting bribes and the problem of harboring and conniving at the crime of organized crime of a triad nature, ensuring the smooth progress of the overall investigation and handling of the case.
Li Peizhen: The characteristics of this case are as follows: Engaging in power and money transactions on a large scale and wantonly selling official positions. During his tenure as secretary of the party committee and director of the Xiangzhou County Public Security Bureau, Qin Bin took advantage of opportunities such as the promotion of cadres' posts (ranks) and the adjustment of posts to accept money and materials from many subordinates on many occasions, ranging from a few thousand yuan to more than 200,000 yuan.
The sense of discipline is weak, and the police umbrella cover is "black". Qin Bin knew that the law had broken the law and violated the law in law enforcement, and had long-term contacts with Tan xxx and other people involved in the mafia, and acted as a "protective umbrella" for Tan xxx and others, shielding and conniving at mafia-type organizations, and seriously undermining the order of local economic and social life.
Confrontation with organizational investigations, avoid the heavy and light. Qin Bin has been a police officer for 36 years, has rich experience in handling cases, has a strong sense of counter-investigation, has sufficient preparations in the face of organizational investigations, has a strong confrontational psychology, pretends to be crazy and stupid in the early stage of examination and investigation, refuses to explain the problem, and in the face of evidence, even believes that he has not specifically implemented the behavior of acting as a "protective umbrella", in a vain attempt to distort the law to exonerate himself.
2. How to determine that Qin Bin has subjective knowledge that the gang he is protecting is a mafia-type organization? Qin Bin also constitutes the crime of bending the law for personal gain, helping criminals evade punishment, and harboring and conniving at mafia-type organizations, how to determine the crime?
Li Peizhen: The Qin Bin case is the first case investigated and dealt with by Laibin City since the reform of the supervision system that has been identified as acting as a "protective umbrella" for mafia-type organizations and suspected of harboring and conniving at the crime of mafia-type organizations. To act as a "protective umbrella" for mafia-type organizations, it is necessary for the perpetrators to have a clear subjective intention, that is, to know that the object of their protection is a mafia-type organization.
How is "knowing" determined? If, in accordance with the criteria for determining mafia-type organizations in the legal sense, under the circumstance that the person under investigation does not admit that they know that they are protecting a mafia-type organization, it is difficult for the discipline inspection and supervision organs to determine this part of the problem in the party discipline and government affairs sanctions before the court makes a judgment, which is likely to cause some party members and cadres to escape responsibility and be investigated. Based on this, we believe that in the case where the person under investigation does not admit that he knows that he is protecting a mafia-type organization, he should comprehensively consider his or her position and job duties, the connection between the matter of seeking profit and his or her authority, and make a comprehensive judgment on the degree of knowledge and understanding of the mafia-type organization, and whether there is close interaction with the members of the organization. According to the Minutes of the Symposium of the Supreme People's Court, the Supreme People's Procuratorate, and the Ministry of Public Security on Handling Organized Crime of a Mafia Nature, as long as the perpetrator knows or should have known that it is an organization engaged in illegal or criminal activities, and still shields the organization and its members, or connives at its illegal or criminal activities, the crime may be determined. As to whether the perpetrator knows that the organization is of a mafia nature, it does not affect the establishment of this crime.
In this case, since 1998, Tan Moumou has gathered some idle members of society to organize, plan and implement many illegal and criminal activities such as opening casinos, illegal detention, extortion, and intentional injury in Xiangzhou County. As the political commissar and director of the Xiangzhou County Public Security Bureau, Qin Bin has the duty to investigate and deal with violations and crimes, but he has long had contacts with Tan xxx, the leader of the mafia-type organization, and Qin xx, a member of the mafia-type organization, and accepted bribes from the two. Based on Qin Bin's close ties with these people and his determination of his powers and duties, he knew or should have known that Tan X and others were organizations or gangs engaged in illegal and criminal activities. In the case of Tan X's crowd brawl, after Qin Bin accepted a bribe, knowing that Tan X and others had committed the criminal act of gathering a crowd to fight and that casualties had occurred, he still instructed the investigators to change the judicial appraisal report, shield Tan X and the members of his organization, so that they would not be held criminally responsible, and connived at the mafia-type organization to gain momentum, and should be regarded as a "protective umbrella" for the mafia-type organization.
Wu Chunyan: In October 2019, the State Supervision Commission, the Supreme People's Court, the Supreme People's Procuratorate, the Ministry of Public Security, and the Ministry of Justice issued a "Circular", requiring strict investigation of cases of office workers involved in criminal syndicates and vices, and focusing on investigating and handling cases in which public employees abuse their powers to help criminals evade punishment after accepting bribes, and clarifying that state organ staff shield and connive at mafia-type organizations, and that the acts of shielding and conniving also constitute other crimes such as harboring crimes and helping criminals evade punishment. Punishment for a felony should be chosen. In this case, Qin Bin's act of helping criminal Tan X evade punishment also constituted the crime of bending the law for personal gain, the crime of helping criminals evade punishment, and the crime of shielding and conniving at a mafia-type organization. According to the relevant provisions of the Criminal Law, the sentencing range for the crime of harboring and conniving at a mafia-type organization is more severe than the punishment range for the crime of bending the law for personal gain and helping criminals evade punishment. Therefore, we will choose a felony for Qin Bin's act of helping criminal Tan Moumou evade punishment as the crime of shielding and conniving at a mafia-type organization. In addition, according to the relevant provisions of the Criminal Law, whoever commits the crime of harboring or conniving at a mafia-type organization and commits other criminal acts shall be punished in accordance with the provisions on the combined punishment of several crimes. Therefore, in accordance with the provisions of the law, we have identified Qin Bin's act of helping criminal Tan XX to evade punishment as the crime of shielding and conniving at a mafia-type organization, and the act of accepting bribes from Tan XX as the crime of accepting bribes, and these two crimes should be punished together. This is also a concrete embodiment of strictly implementing the "Circular" and focusing on investigating office personnel involved in criminal syndicates and evil crimes.
3. Why is the plea leniency system applied to Qin Bin? What are the main factors that the judicial organs consider when sentencing?
Wu Chunyan: On October 11, 2019, the Supreme People's Court, the Supreme People's Procuratorate, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of State Security, and the Ministry of Justice jointly issued the Guiding Opinions on the Application of the Plea Leniency System, which stipulates that the plea leniency system does not have the applicable crimes and the possible punishment, and all criminal cases can be applied, and criminal suspects and defendants cannot be deprived of the opportunity to voluntarily admit guilt and accept punishment for reasons such as the lightness of the crime, the seriousness of the crime, or the specialness of the crime. In the course of handling Qin Bin's case of shielding and conniving at a mafia-type organization, after reviewing the evidence in the case and interrogating Qin Bin in accordance with the law, we held that the facts of the case were clear, the evidence was indeed sufficient, and it met the requirements for prosecution. Qin Bin expressed his willingness to admit guilt and serve the law, and in the presence of his defender, signed a plea affidavit, and applied the plea leniency system to him in accordance with the law.
Hong Yuting: In this case, Qin Bin took advantage of his position to seek benefits for others and accepted money and property from others, which amounted to a huge amount, constituting the crime of accepting bribes; knowing that the organization led by Tan X was a mafia-type organization engaged in illegal and criminal activities, he still shielded the illegal and criminal activities of the organization and its members, and connived at the organization's continued illegal and criminal activities, and the circumstances were serious, constituting the crime of shielding and conniving at a mafia-type organization. Qin Bin alone commits several crimes and shall be punished for several crimes at the same time. After Qin Bin was arrested, he truthfully confessed the facts of the crime, admitted guilt and accepted punishment, and had statutory lenient punishment circumstances. Qin Bin withdrew part of the stolen money and was willing to sell his property for the return of stolen money, with discretionary mitigating circumstances. When sentencing, we comprehensively considered Qin Bin's criminal facts, nature, degree of harm to society, and the lenient and lenient circumstances of Qin Bin's crime, and finally sentenced Qin Bin to ten years' imprisonment and a fine of 500,000 yuan for the crime of accepting bribes, harboring and conniving at triad organizations, handing over 586,000 yuan of stolen money he withdrew to the state treasury, and continuing to recover 1.9088 million yuan of bribes that he had not yet withdrawn.
Source: Website of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the State Supervision Commission