In his recollection, that kind of cri was sothing only staff mbers of state agencies were eligible to commit. No matter how much money ordinary people had, it seed they wouldn’t be investigated. At most, having too much money flow through a bank card might raise the risk of freezing issues, requiring a personal visit to the bank for clarification.
However, the case of Han Dongting directly involved the prosecutor’s office. They explicitly accused him of possessing an enormous amount of wealth from unidentified sources, demanding he explain the origin of his assets.
This left him utterly bewildered.
After racking his brain to no avail, he pulled out his phone and called a lawyer friend. The key question he asked concerned Han Dongting being suspected of possessing an enormous amount of wealth from unidentified sources.
"Your friend... is he a staff mber of a private hospital?" Over the phone, the lawyer asked for confirmation repeatedly.
"Yes. He’s just earned a bit more money than usual, but that shouldn’t qualify him for such a charge, right? Isn’t that a cri only state agency workers can commit?" Liu Qiao asked, his face etched with worry.
「Three years ago.」
He had opened his pharmacy precisely because Sanhe Hospital was a private institution. Such private hospitals... they seed to avoid excessive monitoring and weren’t bound by so many rules and regulations. It was easier for him to "collaborate" with the hospital and make a killing.
However, minutes later, the lawyer on the other end of the phone, having understood the situation, stated seriously, "You have a misconception here.
"In criminal law, the cri of possessing an enormous amount of unidentified wealth applies when the property or expenditures of state workers clearly exceed their lawful inco by a large margin. In such cases, they can be ordered to explain the source. If the person cannot prove that the source is lawful, the difference will be considered illegally obtained. This offense can be subject to up to five years of fixed-term imprisonnt or criminal detention, and the amount of this difference will be confiscated.
"But the ’state workers’ here are not as the public perceives them.
"It mainly includes several categories. The first category refers to personnel engaged in official duties in state organs.
"The second category refers to staff engaged in official duties in state-owned institutions, enterprises, public institutions, and people’s organizations, as well as those assigned by these entities to carry out official duties in non-state-owned institutions, enterprises, public institutions, and social organizations.
"The third category, according to legal norms, includes persons engaged in public professional activities."
Over the phone, the lawyer analyzed these three categories in great detail. The first category referred to personnel from public security and prosecution authorities and other governnt workers. The second category included employees from state-owned enterprises, public schools, hospitals, welfare institutions, and so forth. But the third category also encompassed private hospitals. This was because the industry involved the public sector and was related to people’s livelihood, constituting a special institution. It also required strict regulation.
"This... includes that as well?" Liu Qiao’s eyes widened in astonishnt upon hearing this.
This was the first ti he had ever heard such a thing.
From the other end of the line, Liu Qiao’s lawyer friend suddenly said, "Let tell you, the cri of possessing an enormous amount of unidentified wealth may seem minor, but it carries a severe sentence.
"If you’re lucky, and the source of the assets isn’t discovered, you can be charged with the cri of possessing an enormous amount of unidentified wealth. This is subject to up to five years of fixed-term imprisonnt or criminal detention, with the difference in assets confiscated.
"But things are often not so simple. If the source is identified and the act of taking bribes is confird, then you will be charged with bribery, and the sentence will be determined by the amount of the bribe.
"For bribes of a ’substantial amount’ or other serious circumstances, one faces up to three years of fixed-term imprisonnt or criminal detention, along with a fine.
"For bribes of a ’huge amount’ or other grave circumstances, the sentence is three to ten years of fixed-term imprisonnt, along with a fine or confiscation of property.
"For bribes of an ’exceptionally huge amount’ or other particularly serious circumstances, the sentence is ten years to life imprisonnt, in addition to a fine or confiscation of property.
"To be specific, amounts exceeding two hundred thousand yuan but less than three million yuan are considered a ’huge amount.’ Amounts over three million yuan are considered ’particularly huge amounts.’ This results in a sentence of over ten years of fixed-term imprisonnt and confiscation of property.
"And those who offer the bribes will be charged with the cri of bribery. Under the sa sentencing guidelines, they face seven to ten years of fixed-term imprisonnt!"
"This... Th-this... How could it be so serious?" Liu Qiao swallowed hard, his face falling instantly.
"Didn’t you say it was a friend of yours? Take my advice and cut ties with him; he’s beyond help," his lawyer friend earnestly advised over the phone.
Liu Qiao chuckled bitterly as he hung up.
This one call sent his heart rate skyrocketing to 180.
At that mont, he felt an inexplicable panic. He had been conspiring with Han Dongting for several years, writing excessive prescriptions to reap huge profits from pharmaceuticals. During this period, he had given Han Dongting a substantial amount of money. But to be on the safe side, he had always given cash. Little did he know Han Dongting had actually spent all that cash on buying houses, even registering a property under the na of each family mber. Such blatant spending... No wonder he was under investigation.
Thinking this, he clenched his teeth and called Han Dongting.
"Hello? How’s it going? What did your lawyer friend say?" As soon as the phone connected, Han Dongting asked eagerly from the other end.
Liu Qiao was silent for a mont before he finally spoke, "My lawyer friend said that you might be suspected of possessing an enormous amount of unidentified wealth, as well as taking bribes."
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