安邦创始人吴小晖一审获刑18年

Wu Xiaohui, the Chinese tycoon who rose to international prominence to buy the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, was sentenced to 18 years in prison on Thursday after having pleaded guilty to defrauding investors.

周四，安邦集团创始人、前董事长吴小晖因集资诈骗、职务侵占罪一审获刑18年。

Mr. Wu was convicted by a court in Shanghai of using the company he founded, Anbang Insurance Group, to cheat investors out of more than $10 billion, in one of China’s biggest cases of financial crime.

上海市第一中级人民法院宣布了判决，称吴小晖利用安邦保险集团骗取投资者652亿余元，这已成为中国最大的金融犯罪案件之一。

Facing a potential life sentence, Mr. Wu had pleaded guilty to the charges and asked the court to consider a lighter sentence.

面对可能会被判处无期徒刑，吴小晖表示认罪，并请求法庭考虑减轻刑罚。

The Shanghai No. 1 Intermediate People’s Court handed down its sentence as 50 people, including members of Mr. Wu’s family, sat in the courtroom, according to a statement from the court.

根据上海市第一中级人民法院的一份声明，50余人在法庭内旁听了宣判，其中包括吴小晖的家人。

Mr. Wu was thrust into the spotlight in February when the government seized Anbang, in part of a crackdown on companies that have acquired too much debt by bingeing on overseas assets.

今年2月，中国政府在对通过收购海外资产而举债过多的公司进行打击时，查封了安邦，吴小晖成为公众关注的焦点。

He initially contested the charges in March during his first and only appearance in the court, which included allegations that he had instructed his employees to flee overseas and change their contact information when the government began investigating the company last year.

在3月首次出庭时，吴小晖曾对指控提出异议，这些指控包括，他在2017年政府开始调查该公司时，曾指示员工逃往海外，并更改了他们的联系方式。

“I repent deeply, I know and regret my crimes,” Mr. Wu said then in a televised statement from the court.

“我深刻忏悔，知罪悔罪，”吴小晖后来在法庭播出的电视声明中说。

Anbang went on an international buying spree in recent years, most notably acquiring the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in Manhattan for $2 billion.

近年来，安邦在海外大举收购，最引人注目的是以20亿美元的价格收购了曼哈顿标志性的华尔道夫酒店(Waldorf Astoria)。

When the government seized Anbang earlier this year, it shook investors as far as Vancouver, where the company owns a retirement home, and Amsterdam, where it owns an insurance company.

安邦被政府接管的消息在全球引起了反响，令远至温哥华和阿姆斯特丹的投资者震惊不已，安邦在温哥华拥有一座养老院，在阿姆斯特丹拥有一家保险公司。

Chinese prosecutors accused Mr. Wu of a convoluted scheme in which he hid his control in Anbang through of a web of companies. According to the prosecutors, Mr. Wu instructed employees to falsify financial statements and marketing information. In this way, the government said, Mr. Wu was able to skirt regulations and raise money from the public.

中国检方指控吴小晖阴谋策划骗局，称其通过一个公司网络将他对安邦的控制权隐藏了起来。检方称，吴小晖指使员工伪造财务报表和营销信息。通过这种方式，政府表示，他能够避开监管，向公众筹集资金。

The court said in a statement that it had seized Mr. Wu’s bank accounts, real estate and equity.

法院在一份声明中说，吴小晖的银行账户、房产和股权已被查封、冻结。

In a response on Thursday, Anbang said that Mr. Wu had been removed from his duties as chairman of the company, adding that its operations are under government supervision.

安邦周四表示，吴小晖已被免去董事长的职务，并补充道，它的业务现在由政府监管。

“Anbang has sufficient cash flow to fulfill its commitments to all customers and ensure that the legitimate rights of policyholders are effectively protected,” the company said in a statement.

该公司在一份声明中表示：“安邦现金流充裕，能够履行对所有安邦客户的保单承诺，确保保单持有人的合法权益不受损失。”

Mr. Wu’s lawyer, Zhai Jian, declined to comment.

吴小晖的律师拒绝置评。