A court in eastern China has handed down a rare death sentence to a former municipal official convicted of taking more than 2.2 billion yuan (US$323.8 million) in bribes, marking one of the harshest punishments for economic crimes in recent years.

Axar.az reports, citing South China Morning Post, that Yang Youlin, who once served as executive deputy director of the Nanjing Economic and Technological Development Zone management committee, was found guilty of bribery, embezzlement, misappropriating public funds, abuse of power and money laundering.

The Changzhou Intermediate People’s Court in Jiangsu province delivered the verdict on Monday.

The court imposed a consolidated death sentence, stripping Yang of his political rights for life and ordering the confiscation of all personal assets.

His ill-gotten gains and their yields have been seized and turned over to the state treasury, with authorities empowered to continue recovering any outstanding amounts.

It should be noted that the investigation into Yang was carried out as part of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s nationwide anti-corruption campaign.