-- Calling his former deputy a "liar with extremely bad character," fallen high-flying politician
on Sunday rebutted the testimony of the prosecution's star witness as
his increasingly dramatic trial stretched into a fourth day.
The former Communist
Party chief of the sprawling southwestern metropolis of Chongqing has
denied abusing his power -- the third and final charge being heard in
court in Jinan, eastern China, long after he was stripped of his posts
and expelled from the party.
Prosecutors accuse Bo of
threatening and improperly firing his former police chief Wang Lijun
after learning about a murder investigation involving Bo's wife Gu
Kailai, who is currently serving a suspended death sentence for killing
British businessman Neil Heywood.
On Sunday, Bo insisted
that Wang was lying throughout his court appearance, and said his words
lacked any credibility or legal standing.
Fallen political star Bo Xilai stands for trial at the Jinan Intermediate People's Court on Thursday, August 22.
An overview of the courtroom on August 22 where Bo is standing trial on charges of bribery, embezzlement and abuse of power.
Tight
security is in place around the courthouse in Jinan, China, on
Wednesday, August 21 -- the day before China's so-called "trial of the
century."
Police
detain an elderly demonstrator on August 21 who was protesting against
the Chinese justice system outside the court in Jinan.
Police escort protesters away from the courthouse on August 21.
Police march outside the courthouse in Jinan on August 21.
Security barriers are put in place on August 21 outside the courthouse.
A notice about Bo Xilai's trial is posted outside the courthouse on August 21.
Bo Xilai: China's 'trial of the century'
Bo Xilai: China's 'trial of the century'
China's "trial of the century"
China's "trial of the century"
Bo Xilai: China's 'trial of the century'
China's "trial of the century"
China's "trial of the century"
China's "trial of the century"
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Bo Xilai: China's 'trial of the century'
Disgraced Chinese politician on trial
Bo Xilai's wife testifies
Bo Xilai defends himself in court
China's 'trial of the century'
Politician's supporters still pro-Bo
Wang took the witness
stand Saturday, providing the first opportunity for the two former
allies to confront each other since Wang's attempted defection to the
United States in early February 2012.
Wang told the court he
fled to the U.S. consulate in Chengdu because he feared for his safety
following a tense encounter in Bo's office, just one day after Wang told
Bo about his wife's suspected involvement in murder.
"He started verbally
assaulting me... and about three minutes later, he walked around the
left side of his desk and stood in front me. He suddenly attacked me
with his fist, hitting on my left ear -- it was not just a slap," Wang
recalled, according to a court transcript.
On Sunday, Bo said: "He
said I didn't just slap him but punched him. I never practiced martial
arts -- I don't possess such striking power," according to a transcript
released by the Jinan Intermediate People's court.
Bo added: "After being
convicted for abuse of power and defection, he still argued that he
didn't defect but engaged in diplomacy in accordance with regulations.
"All this shows this man has extremely bad character and lies on the spot."
The trial was adjourned after the Sunday morning session and will resume Monday morning.
The story behind the 'slap'
On Saturday, Bo conceded he had made mistakes but denied he broke the law to protect his wife.
"I have made mistakes. I
feel regret and I'm willing to take responsibility," Bo said. "But
whether or not I've committed a crime is a different issue."
"I didn't bend the law
to protect Gu Kailai," he said. "I didn't force Wang Lijun out or force
him to defect to the United States."
Bo did acknowledge
slapping Wang in the face -- a key moment long considered a turning
point in the two men's relationship -- during the office confrontation,
claiming he believed Wang was trumping up charges against Gu and thus
furious at his "double-faced" deputy who had faked his loyalty to the Bo
family.
According to a court transcript, Wang said it was more than a slap and that the blow had caused a "discharge" from his ear.
"My body shook a
little... and I found blood at the corner of my mouth and discharge in
my ear," he continued. "I wiped the blood off with a tissue, but when he
heard me calmly tell him again that he had to face the reality, he
threw a glass on the ground while saying 'I'll never accept it.'"
Wang told prosecutors
that Bo's physical violence against him as well as the disappearance of
his aides and investigators led to his decision to seek refuge in the
U.S. diplomatic mission in Chengdu.
When Bo was allowed to
question the witness, Wang revealed in an exchange that Gu had told him
about her intention to kill a day before the murder. And when Bo asked
Wang: "Did you think I was forcing you out in an attempt to cover up (my
wife's murder) case?" Wang replied: "Yes."
Embezzlement and corruption charges
Earlier Saturday, Bo
kept up his vigorous defense against embezzlement charges and, as he did
Friday on corruption charges, and dismissed testimony from his jailed
wife as a desperate attempt to reduce her own sentencing.
Gu was sentenced last
August for killing Heywood in a Chongqing hotel room in November 2011.
She gave her testimony to the court via video and said that Bo was well
aware of multi-million dollar dealings to fund their and their younger
son's jet-setting lifestyle.
"I have feelings for Gu
Kailai," Bo said Saturday morning, after admitting to an extramarital
affair. "She is a vulnerable woman... and who else could she turn in?
That's why all accusations against me originated from her."
Prosecutors allege that
Bo received five million renminbi ($820,000) of public funds from a
local urban planning official in Dalian, Liaoning Province, in the early
2000s when he was mayor and later the provincial governor.
Bo slammed the
allegations as "contradictory" and denied that he needed to take the
money as his wife earned millions of dollars from her five law firms.
Under the bribery
indictment, prosecutors accuse Bo of using his political posts to secure
influence for others. They say that between 2000 and 2012, Bo, Gu and
their son, Bo Guagua, received about 22 million renminbi ($3.6 million)
in bribes from businessmen in Dalian.
Bo's fall from grace
Bo is a princeling, a
term that refers to the children of revolutionary veterans who boast of
political connections and influence. His late father, Bo Yibo, was a
revolutionary contemporary of Chairman Mao Zedong and the late paramount
leader Deng Xiaoping.
Over the past three
decades, Bo rose to power as a city mayor, provincial governor, minister
of commerce and member of the Politburo, the powerful policy-making
body of the Communist Party.
A charismatic and urbane
politician, Bo -- with the help of Wang -- was credited with a
spectacular, albeit brutal, crackdown on organized crime during his time
as the top party official of Chongqing.
Bo's glittering career,
in which he drew admirers and detractors for his populist policies, fell
apart last year amid a scandal involving murder, corruption and
betrayal.
Wang's attempted
defection precipitated Bo's political demise. After Gu's sentencing last
August, Wang was convicted of bending the law for selfish ends,
defection, abuse of power and bribe-taking. He received a 15-year prison
sentence.
Bo's trial is seen as a potentially concluding chapter in the scandal.
His high profile and
connections among the nation's ruling elite have made his case -- with
its tales of greed and wrongdoing by a top official and his family -- an
extremely delicate matter for Chinese authorities.
It's taken more than a
year, during which time the Communist Party has undergone a major
leadership change, to bring him to trial.
Many observers had
expected proceedings to stick closely to a pre-planned script, seeing
the trial's outcome as the result of a political deal struck between Bo
and China's top leaders.
But as he often did in
his political career, Bo has so far stolen the show, mounting a robust
attack on the prosecution's case and ridiculing witness testimony. That
has left China watchers trying to figure out how far he's veered off
script.
Journalists from the
international news media haven't been allowed inside the courtroom. But
the court's official microblog account has delivered updates on
developments inside, attracting more than half a million followers on
Weibo, China's Twitter-like service.
CNN hasn't been able to
verify how accurate and comprehensive the court's version of proceedings
has been. But many observers have interpreted it as a reasonably close,
albeit filtered, account.
British
and other banks will take part in the scheme to compensate customers in
the latest of a series of scandals concerning misconduct in the
financial services industry. 
