Police in China have arrested 12 people, including government officials and port logistics executives, in connection with deadly Tianjin blasts that killed at least 145 people earlier this month.
Chinese prosecutors Thursday charged the officials with dereliction of duty and abuse of power over the deadly blasts at a warehouse in the northeastern port city of Tianjin on Aug. 12, reported Xinhua news agency.
The twelve suspects include head of the Tianjin Municipal Transportation Commission, Wu Dai, and president of the Tianjin Port, Zheng Qingyue, chairman of Tianjin International Ruihai Logistics, Yu Xuewei, vice-chairman Dong Shexuan, and three deputy general managers of the company.
The police crackdown came a day after Chinese Community party sacked the head of country's work safety regulator over corruption allegations, according to The Independent.
A senior Transport Ministry official, Wang Jinwen, is also under investigation for alleged abuse of power.
"An investigation by the Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP) found Wang violated the law to help Tianjin Ruihai International Logistics Co. Ltd., owner of the warehouse that was the site of the blasts and allegedly handled dangerous chemicals, pass safety evaluations and obtain approvals to handle hazardous materials," Xinhua report said.
The death toll from Aug. 12's fatal warehouse blasts has risen to 145 and 28 people are still missing, reported CCTV. About 700 tonnes (almost 772 tons) of sodium cynate were stored in the warehouse before it exploded.
