A businessman who allegedly colluded with the disgraced former head of Shaanxi province has been taken away to “assist authorities’ investigation,” Caixin has learned.

Businessman Yu Wei allegedly used his ties to politician Zhao Zhengyong when Zhao was a senior official of Shaanxi province, to gain profits through business cooperation with state-owned Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum (Group) Co. Ltd., one of China’s biggest oil refining companies, multiple sources close to the matter told Caixin.

Zhao Zhengyong became a senior official in Shaanxi in 2001 and was promoted to governor of the province in 2010 and served as the provincial Communist Party chief from 2012 to 2016. He was put under corruption investigation by the party on Jan. 15, 2019.

Yu allegedly made more than 100 million yuan ($15 million) in a joint venture his company formed with Yanchang in 2012, sources said.

Yu and Zhao were childhood friends through their families in Ma’anshan, Anhui province.

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