HEFEI - Xu Gang, former vice governor of the southeast China's Fujian province, stood trial here Thursday for accepting bribes.

Xu was accused of taking advantage of his various official posts from 2002 to 2013 to seek benefits for others in regards to their businesses, promotion and reassignment.

In exchange, Xu accepted bribes worth 19.77 million yuan (around 2.97 million U.S. dollars) either by himself or through his wife, Yu Na, from 2005 to 2014, according to the indictment from the People's Procuratorate of Hefei, capital of east China's Anhui Province.

The procuratorate filed the charges with Hefei Intermediate People's Court.

Xu confessed to accepting bribes and expressed remorse to the court.

The court ruling will be announced at a later date.

The maximum penalty for those convicted of accepting bribes of at least 3 million yuan in an "extremely serious case" with "extremely vile impact" is death penalty, according to a judicial explanation issued in April. However, a two-year suspended death sentence may be issued if there are mitigating factors.

Nearly 50 people, including journalists and members of the public, observed Thursday's hearing.