Expat caused accident which initially won him sympathy
Print Edition
An expat who initially won sympathy over reports he had been blackmailed by a Chinese woman after a road accident in Beijing yesterday had actually caused her to be knocked down, according to an initial police investigation.
The middle-aged woman was on a zebra crossing when she was hit.
The expat, who didn’t have a driver’s license, was riding an unlicenced motorcycle, police said, adding that they would punish him.
Before the police announcement, people had believed the woman fell by herself and then grabbed the young man to demand money for hitting her.
Witnesses told The Beijing News that the accident occurred around 11am when the woman walked onto the crossing and the motorcycle hit her.
One witness captured the scene on his mobile phone. The video showed the expat swearing at the woman in English and fluent Chinese. The woman, surnamed Li, swore back at him.
The expat’s passenger, believed to be his girlfriend, admitted he was to blame for the accident but insisted he was riding very slowly and the impact was only slight.
They gave Li 1,800 yuan (US$295) to cover medical bills, she said.
A series of pictures was posted online showing the expat’s jacket ripped and Li sitting on his motorcycle, refusing to move. Many who saw the pictures believed Li was trying to extort money from him.
There had been similar cases before and this time a foreigner had fallen victim, they said in online comments. Li was criticized for bringing shame to the Chinese people.
Li said many people from her hometown had made abusive phone calls accusing her of being involved in a racket in Beijing.
Li told The Beijing News the hospital confirmed she had soft tissue injuries and pain in her shoulder and ankle.
The man who took the pictures, also surnamed Li, told the Legal Evening News the woman sat on the ground though she was just slightly hit. Later the foreign young man got down and lifted her up, but she grabbed his hands and claimed she felt bad and asked for compensation. The young man gave her 1,800 yuan to end the dispute, the photographer said.
It is believed the young man came from the UK to China six years ago.
In June, an elderly woman in the southwestern Sichuan Province claimed children had knocked her down, causing her to suffer leg fractures. Her son carried her to one of the children’s home and left her there until the family would pay compensation.
However, police found she had fallen down on her own. She escaped punishment because of her age but her son received a 10-day administrative detention.
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