China policeman involved in Neil Heywood scandal tried by secret court "As a government official holding state secrets, [Mr Wang] left his post during government work hours and defected to a foreign consulate in China, which is a serious offence," Mr Yang said in a pre-prepared, 7-minute statement. Video footage aired on state-media showed a relaxed-looking Mr Wang escorted into court by two police officers. His lawyer, Wang Yuncai, told the Daily Telegraph she hoped for leniency and that Mr Wang's brother and wife had watched proceedings inside the court while his sister waited outside. She requested a reduced sentence pointing out that he had helped "crack" the Neil Heywood murder case by blowing the whistle on Ms Gu. I do not know when the verdict will be, but I think it will be in about two weeks. I cannot be sure," she said. I am hoping for leniency. The trial was pretty standard. I presented evidence, of course. I did my best. "Wang Lijun is well, both mentally and physically," she added. Asked if she believed the verdict had already been decided behind closed doors, she said: "I cannot say." Until the start of this year Mr Wang, 52, was a powerful police chief known for his controversial "smash black" anti-mafia campaign in Chongqing. But in February, after an apparent falling out with his mentor, Mr Bo, he fled to the United States consulate in Chengdu, where he is said to have revealed that Gu Kailai, Mr Bo's wife, had poisoned Mr Heywood. Diplomatic sources told Australia's The Age a "bedraggled" Mr Wang had tears in his eyes as he handed a piece of cardboard to US officials hinting that he wanted to defect. Mr Wang was eventually forced to surrender, after over 30 hours inside. But his actions had already set in motion a chain of events that would rock this year's crucial once-in-a-decade leadership transition and topple Mr Bo, who has yet to be charged with any crime. In August, Ms Gu was given a suspended death sentence after being found guilty of getting Mr Heywood drunk and executing him by pouring cyanide into his mouth. On Monday, the Daily Telegraph revealed how authorities had attempted to conceal the first day of Mr Wang's trial where his lawyer said "state secrets" were aired. That secret "closed-door trial" was confirmed on Tuesday by a report on state-run news agency Xinhua which said charges of "defection and abuse of power" were heard. "Authorities are investigating the incident in which [Wang] entered the US consulate and remained there for one day," Xinhua reported. Outside the court entrance - which is emblazoned with the words "Justice, clean government, civilization, efficiency!" - hundreds of police officers and plainclothes agents gathered on Tuesday, preventing journalists from taking photographs and aggressively blocking attempts to interview passersby. One plainclothes officer manhandled the Daily Telegraph as it attempted to photograph an elderly man who appeared outside the court carrying a Chinese flag. "We need to trust our government that he will receive a fair trial," opined one young man who was passing in front of the court. He and his friend were immediately detained for questioning by police. Two women from Mr Wang's former beat, Chongqing, had turned up outside the court to witness the final chapter of his dramatic downfall. "We came especially for this trial," one of them said, declining to give her name. We are angry. We have been wronged. Our family was a victim of his mafia crackdown. We came to see his final fate. "We are confused," the woman added. One minute we thought he was a hero because of the crackdown. The next he is a criminal. No mention of Mr Bo was made in the court's statement on Tuesday. Within Chongqing's political circles, few now believe Mr Bo will face severe criminal punishment. "Bo will receive lenient treatment - that is now the common feeling," said one source close to the city's government. Additonal reporting by Valentina Luo