Son’s safety led Bogu to commit murder
Print Edition
The wife of fallen politician Bo Xilai murdered a British businessman because she believed he was planning to kidnap and murder her son following a row over a luxury French villa, a court heard yesterday.
Bogu Kailai said she became worried after her son Bo Guagua, who was studying in the United States, told her Neil Heywood had threatened him after arrangements involving the property in Cannes went sour.
Her comments, the first detailed account of events leading up to Heywood’s death in November 2011, appeared in evidence at Bo Xilai’s trial at the Intermediate People’s Court in Jinan.
Bogu, who was not in court, stopped short of directly implicating her husband in the killing in Chongqing.
“In 2011 Guagua’s security was in danger and Bo was definitely aware of that,” said Bogu, a former lawyer.
She said she discussed the threats with Wan Lijun, Chongqing’s then police chief and Bo’s right-hand man, who she described as being “responsible for Guagua’s personal security in the US.”
“We made a blacklist of suspicious people, including Neil Heywood. I told Bo about these,” she added.
“We were worried Guagua would be killed in the US, and I read Guagua and Neil Heywood’s e-mail exchanges so I became more worried. Although Wang said he arranged security for Guagua I was not relaxed at all.
“That’s why the November 15 murder happened.”
Bogu also outlined the web of business dealings surrounding the French Riviera villa that led to the falling-out with Heywood.
More details were provided by Patrick Devillers, a French architect who maintained a business relationship with both Bo and Bogu, forged when the politician was the mayor of the industrial port city of Dalian.
He was the first manager of the villa, and was charged with negotiating “compensation” with Heywood after the Briton’s involvement with the property ended.
Heywood demanded 1.4 million British pounds (US$2.2 million), a figure which according to the transcripts Devillers said left him “shocked” and speechless.
“Neil Heywood sounded outraged and went on ranting about Bogu and that he was tricked by her (legally) and threatened if his request was not met he would ‘reveal everything’,” he said. “I felt the danger as I had never seen him so angry before.”
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