Hilton Hotel Exec Gets Life in Prison

Peng Zhimin, Chinese Hilton Hotel Exec, Gets Life in Prison For Organized Crime
by Rebecca Dolan



A top shareholder of the Hilton hotel in Chongqing, China was sentenced to life in prison Wednesday for his connections with organized crime.

Peng Zhimin was convicted of bribery, prostitution, intentional injury, assault and other charges relating to organized crime, Agence France Presse reports.

Peng headed the Qinglong Property Development Companu, which owned the Chongqing Hilton Hotel in southwestern China.

Last year, the hotel was closed as authorities investigated an alleged prostitution ring being run out of the hotel.

Peng was arrested last July and his charges are connected to that investigation. Thirty-one others tied to Peng's ring were sentenced to various terms of several years to life in prison.

The Hilton Hotel Group was reportedly fully cooperating with authorities.

After the raid, the Hilton was forced to close for a week and was stripped of its fifth star. The incident also prompted China to speed up an overhaul of its hotel star rating system, reports USA TODAY.

Chongqing, a city of 30 million people, is known for being a haven for underworld criminals. A crackdown on organized crime has led to more than 3,300 detentions and hundreds of prosecutions.