Xiao Jianhua maintained close ties with the elite of the Chinese Communist Party. Nevertheless, apparently Chinese security agents are taking the businessman away from a Hong Kong hotel. After that, he disappeared for five years. Now he is being sentenced in China.
A Chinese-Canadian billionaire who mysteriously disappeared from a luxury Hong Kong hotel five years ago has been sentenced to 13 years in prison for embezzlement in China. Xiao Jianhua's company also has to pay the equivalent of almost eight billion euros in fines, as the court in Shanghai ruled.
Xiao and his company, Tomorrow Group, were found guilty of embezzling state funds. In addition, the company had "committed the crime of bribery" and "seriously endangered the financial security of the country". According to the court, Xiao and his company had pleaded guilty and helped recover embezzled funds.
Xiao, one of China's richest men, disappeared from the Hong Kong luxury hotel where he had an apartment in early 2017. According to media reports, he was taken away by Chinese security agents, which at the time violated Hong Kong's autonomy rights. Since then, nothing has been said about Xiao's whereabouts, and he was never seen again - until the Canadian embassy in China reported in July that he was being tried.
Hong Kong media reported at the time of his disappearance that Xiao may have been detained as part of President Xi Jinping's anti-corruption campaign. Critics accuse the Chinese head of state of using the campaign to get rid of unwelcome citizens and political rivals. According to media information, Xiao used to be a close confidant and financial advisor to representatives of the CP leadership, including members of Xi's family.
Although Xiao is a Canadian citizen, the Canadian embassy in China says it was denied consular access to him. The Chinese Foreign Ministry has now stressed that Xiao has "no right to consular protection from other countries" because China does not recognize dual citizenship.
