A village head from Zhanjiang, a port city in west Guangdong province, has been suspended from office, pending further investigation, after he was found to have led a group of village officials to watch sex shows and gamble during a trip to southeast Asia, Guangzhou Daily reported.

The trip, involving 50 village cadres, occurred last June.

One of the villagers said that Huang Kangsheng, Party chief of Xinglong village, and a deputy of People's Congress of Zhanjiang's Xiashan district, took them to watch live sex shows, touched and took photos of shemales in Thailand and gambled in Malaysia.

But Huang argued that expenses for the trip were actually paid for by a real estate developer after a deal involving 2 mu (0.133 hectare) of village land.

He claimed in his defense that he never violated any law or regulation while traveling abroad.

Relevant departments in Xiashan district have decided to launch an investigation into the case, promising to give villagers and netizens a clear explanation.