The former head of Shanghai's biggest soccer club and Formula One circuit faces trial on embezzlement charges tomorrow in Anhui Province, according to the Website of People's Daily.

 

Yu Zhifei, the former general manager of Shanghai Shenhua FC and later Shanghai International Circuit Management Development Co, is due to appear at Wuhu Intermediate People's Court at 3 PM, according to the Website.

 

Yu was referred to prosecutors for criminal investigation after the Communist Party of China's disciplinary authorities discovered he took company money to pay for a house worth 1.05 million yuan (US$140,000), among other illegal behavior during his tenure at Shenhua.

 

Yu, the promoter and key organizing official for F1's Chinese Grand Prix, was probed and expelled by the Party in May for his involvement in Shanghai's pension fund scandal.

 

Yu was ordered to assist an investigation into the pension fund scandal in October.

 

The pension-fund investigation implicated a dozen senior government officials and corporate executives in the city. Former Shanghai Communist Party secretary Chen Liangyu was dismissed over the scandal in September.

 

He is now in custody and is likely to face criminal charges.

 

(Shanghai Daily August 15, 2007)