A reporter learned from the Sichuan Provincial Market Supervision and Administration Bureau on July 23 that a series of commercial bribery cases involving full-chain law enforcement in the online food delivery sector in Xichong County, Nanchong City, have recently concluded. The enforcement model included unified punishment for both bribers and takers, dual penalties for enterprises and individuals, and a three-line accountability system combining administrative, criminal, and disciplinary actions. This marks the first case in Sichuan following the implementation of the newly revised Anti-Unfair Competition Law in 2025.
In June, the Xichong County Market Supervision and Administration Bureau received a tip-off and, during an investigation into issues like "ghost kitchens" on a campus food delivery platform within its jurisdiction, discovered that access rights to the campus appeared to be monopolized by two platform companies over the long term. Other legitimate operators repeatedly attempted to enter the market but were blocked, indicating potential unfair competition. The bureau immediately established a special task force, conducting electronic evidence preservation and on-site verification in parallel, cross-referencing findings, and focusing on three main lines of evidence: fund flows, transaction data, and personnel associations. This approach precisely clarified the dual illegal facts of corporate bribery and individual acceptance of bribes.
The investigation revealed that the two companies involved, in order to exclude other competitors and secure exclusive operating rights, had long used covert methods such as off-the-book cash payments and gifts of high-value tangible goods. They provided improper benefits to school personnel with authority over campus access management in exchange for exclusive operating rights, severely disrupting the market order of fair competition. The bureau strictly adhered to the provisions of the newly revised Anti-Unfair Competition Law, which states that "no entity or individual shall accept bribes from business operators" and that "corporate bribery requires accountability down to the individual." By boldly implementing this, it established a law enforcement model of "unified punishment for bribers and takers, and dual penalties for enterprises and individuals." It also established a fast-track mechanism for the transfer of cases involving administrative, criminal, and disciplinary actions with disciplinary inspection agencies and public security organs, enabling information sharing, clue exchange, and mutual evidence recognition.
Currently, the bureau has imposed fines and confiscated illicit gains totaling 300,000 yuan against two bribery enterprises, four individuals directly responsible for the corporate bribery, and three school staff members who accepted bribes. The cases have been transferred to disciplinary inspection agencies or public security organs. Specifically, one primary bribe recipient had over 150,000 yuan in illicit gains confiscated and fined, with the case transferred to public security and disciplinary inspection agencies. Two secondary bribe recipients had over 20,000 yuan in illicit gains confiscated and fined, with their cases transferred to disciplinary inspection agencies. Four individuals responsible for the corporate bribery were fined over 40,000 yuan.
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