Ma Jian, one of the mainland’s top spy chiefs, has been detained over alleged corruption as part of President Xi Jinping’s ever-widening crackdown on graft, sources with direct knowledge of the situation have told the South China Morning Post.

The sources also revealed that several of Ma’s close relatives were under investigation.

It is not clear what triggered the probes, but it is believed to be linked to a high-profile anti-graft investigation into activities at the top of Founder Group, a Peking University-owned technology conglomerate.

Ma, the executive deputy minister of the omnipotent Ministry of State Security and who sources say was in charge of the mainland’s massive counter-espionage operations, is believed to be close to Founder chief executive Li You who allegedly financed hugely profitable securities trades carried out by one of Ma’s relatives.

See the full article here (English).