YangWeize, the first provincial-level official investigated on suspicion of "serious violations of disciplines" and laws in 2015, is said to have close connections with Zhou Yongkang, the country's former security chief.

From 2004 to 2011, Yang worked as the Party chief of Wuxi, Jiangsu province, where Zhou's hometown is located and many of his relatives live, Chinese media reported.

According to Beijing Youth Daily, Yang, 53, first built contacts with Zhou's brother, Zhou Yuanqing, who was deputy director of the land resources bureau of Wuxi's Huishan district, and then was introduced to Zhou in Beijing.