Prosecutors launched an investigation into a top police officer in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region for suspected abuse of power and graft, the Supreme People's Procuratorate said on Monday.

Li Yanming, former vice-president of Xinjiang Police College and a member of the top decision-making body of the police force in the autonomous region, was "placed under compulsory measures", the SPP said in a statement.

According to China's Criminal Procedure Law, compulsory measures include summons by force, bail, residential surveillance, detention and arrest, which can usually lead to formal charges.