Chinese billionaire rescued after being held hostage with family
Chinese police have rescued one of China’s richest men after he and his family were taken hostage in their home by intruders apparently armed with explosives.
Local media reported that He Xiangjian, the billionaire co-founder of the world’s biggest appliance manufacturer, Midea, was freed on Monday after his son managed to escape and swim across a small river to alert police.
Police in the southern Chinese city of Foshan said they had received a report on Sunday evening that a private home had been broken into and that its residents’ lives were under threat.
They eventually rescued a person surnamed He and arrested five suspects at about 5am local time on Monday morning (2200 BST), the statement said, adding no one was injured.
Local media reported the intruders were carrying explosives.
The 77-year-old He founded Midea in 1992 and stepped down as its chairman in 2012, but continues to be the company’s controlling shareholder. The 2020 Hurun Global Rich List ranked him as the world’s 41st richest person with an estimated wealth of 182bn yuan ($25.70bn)
Midea Group thanked the police and the public for their concern on its official account on the Weibo platform, where thousands of users had been speculating over He’s situation.
The South China Morning Post reported that the dramatic rescue had brought public attention to the stunning wealth of He, who has maintained a much lower profile than many other
Chinese billionaires.
The police said the crime occurred at the Junlan Life Village, which Caixin Media said was a neighbourhood of villas built by Midea.
The case is under further investigation, the police said. Midea grew out of a workshop set up in 1968 by He and other residents of Beijiao, a village that now is part of Foshan.