SIX officials of the Bao'an District Highway Bureau were suspended after they were caught gambling in a restaurant during office hours.

The six left the office at 5 p.m. Friday afternoon to play mahjong at Ruishan Restaurant in the district, the bureau said in an announcement published on Chinese-language newspapers yesterday.

Two of the six were the finance department officials, one was a planning department official while the others worked for the administrative section, Chen Jian, vice director general of the bureau and spokesman said. The finance department chief involved in the scandal was identified by his surname Tang.

The six people will be probed by the district disciplinary inspection authorities and police, and face further punishment, Chen said.

The bureau was in the media spotlight in May this year after an investigation by the Bao'an District Government found the bureau did not seek approval before creating an extravagant administrative center.

Its chief Zhang Zhulang was removed after being held responsible for not seeking approval from higher authorities before giving the project the nod.

An Internet posting revealed in May that the bureau spent more than 30 million yuan (US$3.95 million) on upgrading the bureau headquarters, including the construction of a three-story marble lobby.

Local newspapers had then questioned whether the investment had been open to public tender, indicating possible corruption.

(Li Jing)