Special task force created after preliminary investigative results of Kunming college girl’s death sparked controversy

By Zhang Hui and Zhao Yusha Source:Global Times Published: 2019/10/14 19:33:39

Screenshoot of surveillance video shows Li was likely molested by a man the night before she died. Photo: Sina Weibo


Police in Kunming, Yunnan Province formed a special task force to investigate the death of a local female sophomore student, whose death threw local police’s credibility into question.

The Kunming police said Monday they were tipped off that someone jumped into river on September 9. After their investigation, they brought two men and one woman, who were suspects involved in this case, to the police station for further inquiry.

The body of 18-year-old Li Xincao, a sophomore student, was found on September 11. Li’s cousin reported to the public security bureau on September 16 that Li was molested by others before she was drowned.

Li’s case came under spotlight after, a Sina Weibo user who claimed to be Li's mother, said on this platform on Saturday that in the early hours of September 9, police from the city’s Panlong district informed her about her daughter's death and that her daughter agreed to jump into the river with others, and then drowned. 

But the mother said that she doubted the police preliminary inquiry into her daughter's death after seeing the surveillance video, which showed Li at a bar before she drowned. In this video, Li was likely molested and abused by two men and one woman.

Li's mother dismissed the claim that her daughter died by suicide, and repeatedly urged the police to reinvestigate but was refused.

Her posts soon attracted public opinion in China, with many netizens calling on the local police to reconstruct the incident. 

In response, police in Kunming's Panlong district issued a statement on Saturday, saying that the case is being given priority. It vowed to assign a team to investigate the matter, and to promptly publish the results.

National media, such as the People's Daily, weighed in on the case. It said on Sina Weibo on Monday that "the dignity of a 'little grass' must be protected." 

"Solving the mystery behind Li's death can comfort a mother, and to show respect to people's lives. In a society ruled by law, the public has reason to believe that justice won't be drowned, and that the truth will come out," it said.

On Monday morning, the public were angered by a police-released three-hour surveillance video of the bar, which concluded Li accidentally fell into the river and ruled out the possibility of a crime. 

Hashtag "Police said Li Xincao died by accidentally falling into a river" was viewed more than 840 million times on Sina Weibo as of press time, with many netizens saying that after watching the surveillance video, they were unconvinced.

Kunming police slammed the report, saying they have not yet published any investigation report on Li's death so far.

They also told the Beijing News that they don't have Li's autopsy report yet, and that the case is still being investigated. "The report was not true and we never published it," the police said.

The Kunming police said in its latest statement that Li’s mother asked the police to conduct an autopsy Thursday. 

It also said it has formed a special task force led by the deputy chief of the city’s public security bureau to investigate Li Xincao’s death, and will investigate Panlong district police’s preliminary practices.

The Kunming police vowed to stick to the principle of seeking truth and holding on to the end, and said they will practice impartial law enforcement and keep the public posted about the case’s developments. 

Although the case remains unsolved, the credibility of the Kunming police has already been questioned. Some netizens even made reference to the case of Sun Xiaoguo, a Kunming resident, who was sentenced to death two decades ago, but was found this year to be roaming free and the alleged leader of a criminal gang.

The police should try their best to answer Li's mother's, and the public's concerns over the case as soon as possible, Zhu Wei, a professor at the China University of Political Science and Law, told the Global Times on Monday, adding that the public should also trust the police. After all, the police have more resources.

Zhu said that public trust in the public security department was built on police's swift and effective response to high-profile cases. 

He noted that the police and related authorities, including courts and procuratorates, have to shorten their response time in the internet era, aside from conducting fair and transparent investigations.




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