The diary of an official in east China, recording sexual encounters with more than 500 women, has proved his downfall.

He is now under suspension and facing allegations of corruption.

On the title page of his diary, the official in Anqing City of Anhui Province, identified as Wang Cheng, set an overall target to sleep with 800 different women. More detailed yearly plans were available on New Year's Resolution pages.

For example, on the first day of 2003, Wang wrote: "This year I must have sex with 56 women. At least two of them must not be prostitutes," People's Daily online reported yesterday.

He also wrote in 2003 that he required a monthly income of 8,000 yuan (US$1,172). His monthly salary was only 1,600 yuan then.

Police discovered that he was provided with many women, as corrupt officials were well aware of his weaknesses for sex and money.

Wang taped himself having sex with these women with a hidden camera in a rented house where he usually took them for one-night stands.

If taping was not possible, Wang recorded details of the sex in his diary and how much the services cost.

Wang's wife found the sex diary on his hard drive when she was looking for something in her parents-in-law's apartment. She was so angry that she fell ill after going through the diary and sex videos, the report said.

A friend of Wang's wife sent the diary and hard drive to local prosecutors' office, the report said.

Wang was arrested on March 21. He confessed that he spent all the bribe money on "lovers."

Wang is the second official sacked this year for keeping a sex diary.

Han Feng, a tobacco official in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, was sacked and expelled from the Party after his diary, detailing affairs with female colleagues and his accepting bribes, was posted online.

A police officer said Han's diary was nothing compared to Wang's multimedia recording of events.