SHIJIAZHUANG -- Tang Shuangning, former chairman of China Everbright Group, was sentenced to 12 years in prison for embezzlement and accepting bribes, according to a verdict issued on Tuesday by a court in North China's Hebei province.

Tang has also been fined 1.3 million yuan (about $181,000), with the money he embezzled and his illegal gains to be returned to the victims or turned over to the state treasury, according to the verdict of the Intermediate People's Court of Tangshan, Hebei.

An investigation into Tang revealed that in April 2003, he used his position at the People's Bank of China to take public property worth about 3 million yuan into his own possession.

He was also found to have taken advantage of his various positions between 2000 and 2017 to benefit others, illegally receiving more than 11 million yuan in cash and valuables in return.

In light of the fact that Tang had turned himself in and remained cooperative during proceedings, he was granted leniency by the court.