Man gets life for 14.6m fraud

A man was sentenced for taking 14.6 million yuan ($2.37 million) from a woman with promises he could free her detained husband with his political connections, media reported Sunday.

Ren Pengyu, 49, was sentenced to life without parole on fraud charges, a High People's Court in Anhui province announced Saturday.

The woman, surnamed Wang, first contacted Ren in March 2012 while seeking ways to help her detained husband, according to reports.

Wang's husband had been held since December 2011 on undisclosed charges.

Claiming to be the chief editor of a local journalists' assocation, Ren claimed he could extricate Wang's husband for 14.6 million yuan.

After no progress had been made, Wang demanded he return the money. Ren only returned 6.5 million yuan, and Wang filed a police report in September 2013.