BEIJING - China's anti-graft authorities announced on Monday in a statement that during the year it had found 21.5 billion yuan ($3.24 billion) of public money held in unauthorized departmental coffers.

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The probe was led by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China.

The probe had put government agencies, public institutions, social groups, State-owned and State holding enterprises under scrutiny, and had uncovered 45,593 cases of public money being held in unauthorized departmental coffers, involving a total of 21.5 billion yuan.

A total of 2,669 officials involved in these cases have been punished, also according to the statement.