Self-proclaimed healer held on murder rap
Print Edition
A celebrity “qigong master” who claimed to conjure snakes from thin air and cure the sick has been held by police on suspicion of kidnapping and murder.
Wang Lin, who gained fame and political admirers through his performance of qigong, a spiritual martial art, was detained on Thursday over the death of businessman Zou Yong, Xinhua news agency reported yesterday.
It is the latest drama in the colorful life of a man who previously threatened a reporter with death for questioning his powers — which include retrieving an incinerated banknote intact from an orange.
He gained fame in China two years ago, when images of his feats were posted online, along with pictures of him posing with celebrities. The self-proclaimed healer was reportedly visited by Jack Ma, founder of e-commerce giant Alibaba, for reasons unknown.
Pictures also circulated on social media of Wang with former Railways Minister Liu Zhijun — who was convicted of corruption and given a suspended death sentence — martial arts star Jet Li, and various other senior officials.
Zou and Wang met in 2002, Xinhua reported, adding that Zou told a television station he paid 5 million yuan (US$805,000) in 2009 to become Wang’s disciple.
“Wang has been previously investigated for possession of a gun, unlicensed medical practice, bribery and fraud,” the Xinhua report said.
“Police and health authorities launched an investigation in 2013, but failed to make any headway due to lack of evidence,” it added.
Both Wang and Zou are from central China’s Jiangxi Province, where Zou was also a local legislator.
The businessman said earlier that he had also given Wang “several sports cars and 20 kilograms of gold” to teach him tai chi, according to media reports. Zou, however, turned against his teacher in 2012 after he made persistent requests for money.
Since then, Zou had been revealing Wang’s alleged fraudulent behavior to media and authorities.
“Wang had denied Zou’s allegations,” the Global Times said.
Zou was kidnapped and killed last week, Xinhua said, adding that police in Jiangxi detained two suspects on Tuesday night.
Wang and another suspect were detained on Thursday.
The Beijing News quoted unnamed sources as saying that Zou’s body was chopped up and thrown into a lake.
The newspaper ran an interview with Wang in 2013 that questioned his self-proclaimed powers.
The newspaper suggested he had mastered sleight of hand rather than the supernatural, infuriating Wang so much that he telephoned the reporter to curse her.
“I am telling you, you will die miserably, and your family will follow,” the Beijing News quoted him as saying in a follow-up article.
Wang owns a five-story villa in Jiangxi and keeps a Rolls-Royce and three Hummers, the Beijing News report said.
Despite three decades of rapid modernization in China, many citizens — particularly the elderly and residents of poorer rural provinces such as Jiangxi — still cling to traditional beliefs and superstitions.
Wang has been living in Hong Kong as a permanent resident in recent years, according to the Global Times.
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