Chinese retail tycoon's 14-year jail term upheld

BEIJING — A Chinese retailing tycoon's conviction and 14-year prison term for insider trading and other offenses was upheld Monday as he struggles to retain control of his company. Huang Guangyu, founder of Gome, China's biggest home appliance retailer, was convicted in May, becoming the latest in a string of Chinese entrepreneurs who have run afoul of the law. Huang's conviction for insider trading, illegal enrichment and paying bribes was upheld by the Beijing High People's Court, the prosecutor's office announced. His 14-year prison term and a fine of 800 million yuan ($118 million) also were upheld. The latest twist in Huang's case comes as he is locked in a power struggle with the board of Gome Electrical Appliances Holdings Ltd. Huang, also known as Wong Kwong Yu, is still a major shareholder and is demanding the removal of the chairman who replaced him. A shareholders' meeting is scheduled on Sept. 28 to resolve the dispute. Huang's rise was the classic tale of poor boy makes good amid China's rapid growth after then-supreme leader Deng Xiaoping launched reforms in 1979 that allowed millions of Chinese to drag themselves out of poverty. By 2008, Huang ranked at the top of a list of China's wealthiest entrepreneurs compiled by Shanghai-based analyst Rupert Hoogewerf, with a net worth of $6.3 billion. His wealth has declined since he ran into legal trouble. Huang's wife, Du Juan, was convicted in May and sentenced to 3 1/2 years for insider trading. Monday's announcement said the appeals court reduced that to three years with a three-year reprieve and ordered her released. It gave no explanation but said Du argued that she was only an accomplice, not the main violator. The couple are also under investigation in Hong Kong, and authorities there have frozen their assets. Huang is the latest in a string of Chinese entrepreneurs who have been sentenced to lengthy prison terms. Mou Qizhong, who also previously held the title of China's richest man, is serving a life sentence for bank fraud. Shanghai developer Zhou Zhengyi was sentenced in 2008 to 16 years in prison for bribery, tax receipt forgery and embezzlement. —AP