HANGZHOU -- He Jiacheng, former vice president of the Chinese Academy of Governance, was sentenced to nine years in prison for taking bribes on Tuesday, according to a verdict by a local court in east China.

The Ningbo Municipal Intermediate Court in Zhejiang Province also fined He 700,000 yuan ($101,910) and confiscated his illegal gains.

An investigation found that from 1995 to 2014, the defendant illegally accepted money worth 7.1 million yuan by taking advantage of his various posts to help individuals or companies in IPOs, real estate projects and other areas.

He was shown leniency as he pleaded guilty, expressed remorse, returned all of his illegal gains and disclosed information about the crimes of others.