Chinese President Xi Jinping's anti-corruption drive has caught a "big fish" with the arrest and expulsion from the Communist Party of Zhou Yongkang, the former head of the country's Domestic Security.

The 72-year-old Zhou is the first member of the Politburo Standing Committee to be probed for corruption. His arrest, announced on Saturday morning, was decided during a meeting on Friday of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee.

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The investigation began on July 29, 2014 and the Political Bureau met on December 1 to hear the details of disciplinary breaches made by Zhou, specifically violations of the Party's political, organizational and confidentiality discipline.

Using his power, Zhou helped his family, kin, mistresses and friends to profit by running enterprises that caused big losses to assets owned by the state. He also sold the Party's and China's secrets for a large amount and properties that benefitted himself and his family.

Zhou has adulterous relationship with several women because he used his power to have sex and enrich himself.

The Party, in a statement, said that Zhou "completely deviated" from its nature and mission, undermining its reputation, damaging its cause and resulting in serious consequences.

From 2007 to 2012, Zhou was a member of the Politburo Standing Committee which makes major decisions. He also headed the committee that had oversight functions over the police, domestic security, courts, prosecutors and prisons. He was also general manager of China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), the country's largest oil and gas conglomerate.

Xi's ascent to power in 2012 ended Zhou's career and the start of investigation into areas where he had considerable influence such as in CNPC and Sichuan Province. According to the New York Times, the son of Zhou, the son's mother-in-law and Zhou's sister-in-law are in control of oil and gas companies worth $160 million or 1 billion renminbi.

Legal experts said that Zhou is not only paying for his crimes but reaping as well the fruit of his role in taking the rule of law backwards by at least 10 years. Li Xiaolin told the New York Times, "Now he's become a victim of the lack of rule of law, because his case is also being dealt with by the legal system that he himself built with his own hands."

TagsZhou Yongkang, China corruption