Recent years have seen dozens of notorious officials brought to justice after their misdeeds were exposed online as ordinary citizens take up the task of whistle-blowing. Among these watchdogs using the Internet as an active platform for setting the record straight is Gao Qinrong, a former Xinhua reporter whose profile as a muckraker landed him in jail and exiled him from journalism.

Earlier this year, Gao posted on his verified Sina Weibo account that Zhang Yan, an official in the disciplinary department of Yuncheng City, Shanxi Province, illegally holds two hukou (household registration permits).

Later Gao further revealed that Zhang's father-in-law, a former local official, owns about a dozen properties. The posts went viral and Zhang was soon under official investigation.

From high-profile reporter to online whistle-blower, the 58-year-old has no regrets, even when it comes to his eight years in prison for crimes which he asserts were fabricated by vengeful local authorities.

"In terms of the sentence itself, I feel the justice system failed; but when I see corrupt officials being punished, I feel there is still justice in this society," Gao said.

Once a reporter

In 1998, while working for the Xinhua News Agency branch in Shanxi Province, Gao wrote an article exposing a fake irrigation project in Yuncheng, which cost over 200 million yuan ($32 million). The news was soon covered by CCTV and prompted a huge social response. 

To his surprise, no officials implicated in the case were punished, while he himself got arrested. He was soon given a 12-year sentence for "accepting bribes, fraud and sex trafficking" in 1999.

"My mother wrote in a letter that she lent a family friend 30,000 yuan, and later he paid me back, but the money was slated as a bribe for recovering belongings that were being held by police, which I helped him retrieve," Gao explained. "The so-called fraud money was compensation from a hotel where 40,000 yuan was stolen from my room. I reported the case to the police and signed a document with the hotel, but the letter from my mother and the hotel document were both denied as proof of my innocence in court."

The sex trafficking charges were founded on a video taken by two of his friends when he paid them a visit in their hotel room. At the time, Gao explained, he had no idea the women with his friends were prostitutes. "The uncut video also shows that my daughter was with me on the visit, but her image was deleted from the clip," Gao argued. "I would definitely not bring my daughter if I actually engaged in business like that."

The decision of the court came as a shock to the journalist.

"I really didn't expect such a sentence because I did nothing wrong and the charges were totally groundless," said Gao.

An official from the Intermediate People's Court of Yuncheng told the Global Times that the sentence was based on the law and was detailed in several reports to superior-level authorities.

At that time, Gao had already become quite famous for his influential reports on officials' dirty deeds.

In 1987, a former deputy Party secretary from Taiyuan, capital of Shanxi Province, lost his position after Gao published an article pointing out that the official was shielding his son from several rape cases. His son was also sentenced to 14 years in prison.

"The result shocked many people because the official was well known for previous abuses of power. It also encouraged me to insist on revealing the truth. I received more tip-offs as locals began to see me as an honest and brave reporter," said Gao.

As he continued to write negative reports on local officials, he also made many enemies.

Gao once reported on illegal toll gates in Yuncheng, implicating the head of the local police bureau. The official insisted that the report was fabricated. Gao then conducted further investigations with other media outlets and published another report, criticizing the official's reaction. The official was then punished for his involvement with the illegal toll gates.

After Gao was put in prison, he learned that this police official had been in charge of his case.

Fighting for justice

"My source for the irrigation project was also put into prison and when he was released in 2003, he was badly beaten by three gangsters right outside the prison. He is now crippled and the case remains unresolved," Gao said, adding that he has written many letters of appeal regarding his case, with no response.

After he was thrown into prison, more than 100 famous writers, scholars, painters, media workers and lawyers wrote to the National People's Congress, the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate, but all in vain.

"Most of them didn't know me," Gao said. "I think they were not only appealing for me, but appealing for protection for every citizen who insists on telling the truth."

New playing field

After his release in 2006, Gao had difficulty adjusting to China's fast-changing society. It took more than a year for him to catch up with his surroundings, but his thirst for reporting never faded away.

"My family was worried about me and begged me not to get into trouble again, but I insisted, and told them I should give voice to those worse off than us." Gao began working for Hong Kong-based newspaper Takungpao, but in 2009 had to leave his position after people with criminal records were banned from journalism.

"I discovered I could expose corruption cases on the Internet, where information spreads farther and faster," Gao said. "It requires certain tactics to write clear, attractive posts in less than 140 words."

Gao still receives tip-offs from acquaintances in Shanxi, where he makes ends meet by writing advertising copy and providing business consultation and investigates stories in his spare time. If the tips are confirmed, he exposes them online or publishes reports in media outlets using a pseudonym.

"Without a reporter's identity, it's hard to get official information," Gao said, "but I can carry out my investigations through talking with common residents."

In 2011, he broke a story about an official from a State-owned coal company losing 50 million yuan in cash when his home was robbed, which soon made headlines nationwide.

Today, Gao is focused on Zhang Yan's case. "I am very anxious because I received information that her father-in-law might run away, but the government seems quite slow to take action," he said.

Gao said despite the limitations of online anti-corruption efforts, he is wholly devoted to exposing the truth to the public, even he though it has invited death threats. "I am not afraid. I cultivated enough energy for myself during my eight years in prison."