CCTV9英语新闻：“红色通缉令”头号逃犯杨秀珠纽约受审（在线收听）

China continues its hunt for economic fugitives and corrupt former officials and has seen an increase in cooperation with international policing institutions. 

On Tuesday, the first hearing in the trial of China's most-wanted economic fugitive Yang Xiuzhu took place in a New York immigration court. Yang is believed to have had an application for political asylum rejected.

In downtown New York, a 30-minute hearing was held behind closed doors, but Yang could be seen sitting in the courtroom in an orange prison jumpsuit.

Yang's lawyer Vlad Kuzmin said she has applied for political asylum but refused to reveal any other details.

After the hearing, Yang was taken back to the correctional facility in Hudson County, New Jersey.

Last month, a source from the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) confirmed that Yang, who went into hiding after being sought by anti-corruption investigators in China, had been detained in the US.

ICE accused Yang of "violating the terms of the Visa Waiver Program" and asked the immigration court to deport her to China.

Yang is one of a hundred Chinese nationals suspected of corruption, who are believed to have fled abroad. She used to serve as vice mayor of Wenzhou, a coastal city in east China's Zhejiang province. When investigators started looking into her activities in 2003, she and her family fled the country.

Investigators have found evidence that Yang had accepted about US$41 million in bribes, and she was immediately subjected to an Interpol red notice.

Mo Hu, Former Deputy Director of the NYPD, says there is little chance that Yang could get political asylum.

China has released a list of 100 economic fugitives, all believed to have fled abroad, as part of the country's recent anti-graft campaign. All of the fugitives are subject to worldwide Interpol arrest warrants.

The US Department of Homeland Security stated in April that it planned to simplify the repatriation process for Chinese fugitives.