1st Ld-Writethru: CPC expels Shanxi capital's former Party chief

Chen Chuanping, former Party chief of Taiyuan City, capital of north China's Shanxi Province, has been expelled from the Communist Party of China (CPC) and dismissed from public office following an internal graft investigation.

The CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) announced on Tuesday that it found Chen, also a former member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Shanxi Provincial Committee, had violated Party codes of conduct and taken bribes himself or through relatives.

He took advantage of his post to seek profits for family members or friends' businesses and for others in selection of officials. He abused his power and caused great losses to state assets, said the CCDI in a statement.

As a senior Party official, Chen "disregarded the Party's political rules and organizational disciplines, seriously violated Party disciplines and the law," it said.

As he is among the 171 alternate members of the 18th CPC Central Committee, Chen's expulsion from the Party will be further endorsed by a future plenum of the CPC Central Committee.

He is suspected of crimes including bribery and abuse of power and his case will now be subject to a criminal investigation, according to the statement.

The CCDI announced its investigation against Chen in August 2014 and he was later removed from post. Endi