Zhang Jianchao, an official with the Yan'an urban management bureau in Shaanxi province, was accused for registering a luxury vehicle as a service vehicle, said people.com.cn, the online news website of People's Daily.

Zhang, head of the bureau, registered a Toyota SUV, worth more than 400,000 yuan ($65,000) as a service car under the Yan'an Tap Water Pipeline Network Installation Services Company, a company within his jurisdiction. Criteria for a Shaanxi province service car include a domestic vehicle priced at less than 180,000 yuan.

The charge follows a previous incident within the bureau, in which eight officers were suspended for beating a bicycle dealer and stomping on his head on May 31 while carrying out a campaign against illegal street vendors and traders. The men reportedly reeked of alcohol at the time of the campaign.