Six get prison for skimming off grain from national reserve

Six people who illegally sold over 250 tons of grain from national reserves by adding water to inflate the grain's weight were given prison terms ranging from 5 1/4 years to 6 1/2 years, the Fengxian District Prosecutors' Office said.

The six sellers, including five rice company staff members and one grain retailer, made 578,000 yuan (US$92,480) in profit from the illegal sales, prosecutors said.

The chief culprit, surnamed Zhang, the vice general manager of the rice company, and his accomplices were reported in June of last year to have stolen and sold grain from national reserves kept in storage at the company's warehouse between 2011 and 2012, according to police in Fengxian district, Shanghai.

They added water in the grain to make it heavier than its actual weight and skimmed off the "overweight" part for sale. Over 250 tons of grain were stolen on seven occasions and sold for 578,000 yuan. The weight of the grain, including corn and wheat, in each deal was about 40 tons.

Zhang asked the company accountant to put 300,000 yuan into his own account and his five accomplices split the remaining money.