Police in Jinan, the capital of Shandong province, on Thursday denied speculation that the former police chief in the city's Licheng district owns 16 properties, claiming the properties were police dorms.

A post on online forum China.com on Tuesday, claimed Cheng Shaochun, former chief of the public security bureau in Licheng district of Jinan, had 16 properties under his name. The post was later deleted from the forum.

Jinan police denied the accusations on its official micro blog on Thursday, saying the buildings described in the online post were actually dormitories for police officers in the city.

The micro blog said the buildings were developed in 2005 and later sold to police officers.

The accusations came amid increasing public resentment over officials possessing multiple properties.

Earlier this month, Zhai Zhenfeng, former director of the housing administration bureau in Erqi district of Zhengzhou, the capital of Henan province, was arrested after online postings exposed his wife, daughter and son owned more than 20 apartments.