TAIYUAN, April 27 (Xinhua) -- Two courts in Shanxi Province will soon begin the trial of 18 officials for their role in a fatal landslide that killed at least 277 people last year, the provincial procuratorate said Monday.
The Linfen municipal procuratorate and the Xiangfen county procuratorate have respectively transferred the investigation files of the suspects to the corresponding courts as of last Monday, applying for court hearings over charges of dereliction of duty, taking bribes and misuse of power.
The suspects include Sang Haiming, former deputy director of the provincial administration of land and resources; Wang Youshun, former head of the Linfen municipal work safety supervision administration; deputy head of Xiangfen County; and some other officials with the municipal, county and village-level authorities.
The Linfen municipal intermediate people's court and the Xiangfen county court are studying the cases and will announce the date of the court hearings soon.
The collapse of an unlicensed iron ore dreg-retaining pond triggered a massive landslide on Sept. 8 in Xiangfen county, Linfen city of the coal-rich Shanxi. The torrent of mud and mining waste buried an outdoor market near a village of more than 1,000 residents.
At least 277 people were killed and four other remain missing.
Investigations found the collapse was due to negligence. The dumping pond was built in violation of a regulation and had almost no safety inspections.
China has meted out punishment to 113 people held responsible for the accident. Among the total, 51 were transferred to judicial organs for criminal charges and 62 received disciplinary penalties.
The local judicial authorities will gradually deal with the rest of the officials separately from the 18 held responsible for the accident as each case requires much time for investigation.
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