The Intermediate People's Court in Baotou City in north China opened a public trial Thursday on an embezzlement case involving five executive officers with China's largest milk producer.

Former chairman of the board of the Yili Group, Zheng Junhuai, is alleged to have colluded with four other executive officers in the state-owned milk producer in defalcating 31.3 million yuan (about 4 million U.S. dollars) in 2004.

Prosecutors hold that evidence clearly indicates that Zheng played a pivotal role in the defalcation.

Born in 1950, Zheng was also CEO of Yili Group and a deputy representing north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region to China's 10th National People's Congress, the country's top legislature.

The court, accommodating some 200 people was fully occupied on Thursday due to the high profile of the case.

Among the defendants were Yang Guiqin, former vice chairwoman of the board, Zhang Xianzhu, former secretary of the board and financial officer, Li Yongping, former office dean of the company, and Guo Shunxi, former assistant to Yang Guiqin.

The suspects were brought under detention by anti-corruption prosecutors in December 2004.

In 2004, Yili Group reported a total sales volume of 8.73 billion yuan (about 1.08 billion US dollars) ranking first in China's dairy industry.

Source: Xinhua