Ex-PLA top general Xu Caihou held in cash for rank probe
Xu Caihou, who is dying of cancer, is hauled from his sick bed to answer allegations that he raked in millions by selling military ranks
A retired top PLA general has been detained in a corruption investigation, according to sources close to the matter, ending months of speculation about his fate and potentially triggering a major shake-up of the military top brass.
Xu Caihou, former vice-chairman of the powerful Central Military Commission (CMC), was taken from his sick bed at 301 Military Hospital in Beijing on Saturday by dozens of armed policemen. His wife, daughter and personal secretary were taken into custody on the same day, sources told the .
He was detained on the same day as President Xi Jinping chaired the first meeting of a steering group that will tackle reform in the military.
Xu, 71, has been placed under - a Communist Party disciplinary measure used to interrogate party members suspected of corruption - in a secretive detention centre.
If the party disciplinary agency gathers ample evidence against him and the case goes to court, Xu would become the highest-ranking military officer to go on trial for corruption. Analysts said the trial would be held in a military court, which means the verdict would not be publicly announced
Xu was promoted to the CMC in 1999 and became its vice-chairman in 2004. Rumours about his fate were fuelled when he was absent from last year's National People's Congress, where he formally retired from the CMC. Over the past decade, Xu wielded huge influence over the world's largest military as former president Hu Jintao, the nominal commander-in-chief, was known for his weak control of the army.
