BEIJING : A real-estate tycoon who rebuked Chinese President Xi Jinping for the country's response to Covid-19 pandemic has been sent to jail for 18 years on graft charges.A court in Beijing on Tuesday found Ren Zhiqiang guilty on several charges, including embezzling public funds and accepting bribes, CNN reported.This follows after Ren, who is a retired real-estate tycoon, had disappeared in March after he allegedly wrote an essay rebuking Xi's COVID-19 response.
Following his criticism, Ren was charged with corruption-related offences.Besides sentencing to 18 years in prison, fines worth USD 620,000 (4.2 million yuan) were also imposed on the tycoon."I saw not an emperor standing there exhibiting his 'new clothes,' but a clown who.