CHANGSHA, China (Kashmir English): Police in China’s Hunan Province have released details of an unusual case involving a death and a funeral, both of which were fake.
According to details, a man identified as Si was stopped for drink-driving. Police records showed that he had twice previously been caught drink-driving without a licence.
After being caught for a third time, he feared that he would be sent to jail.
Elaborate plan to avoid jail
While released on bail, he devised a plan to avoid punishment. He persuaded members of his family to help stage his death and funeral.
The family bought a coffin in advance and scattered empty medicine bottles around the house. The man held his breath and used cooling equipment to lower his body temperature so that it appeared he had died from a medicine overdose.
During the funeral, his family elders covered his face with a cloth and told neighbours that the medicine had disfigured his face.
Soon after the fake death was staged, he was buried in haste. While the coffin was being lowered into the grave, he secretly fled to another province.
The deception did not last long. Police became suspicious after finding several unusual happenings.
The coffin had been bought before his reported death. His family did not call an ambulance or inform the police. No death certificate was issued, and there was no official record of his cremation.
Neighbours and security camera footage also confirmed that he was still alive.
Police arrested the man. A court sentenced him to five months in prison and fined him 20,000 yuan.
Legal proceedings are also under way against his mother and grandmother for helping to conceal the offence and withhold the truth.
