Chinese police rescued the billionaire founder of home-appliance giant Midea Group after an abduction attempt at his home over the weekend.
He Xiangjian (何享健), China’s seventh-richest person, was held hostage by the would-be kidnappers, who were carrying explosive materials, the Economic Observer reported.
The attempt failed after his son escaped and swam across a lake to raise the alarm, Forbes magazine reported.
He has a net worth of about US$24 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Police in Foshan, Guangdong Province, said on WeChat that they had received a report at 5:30pm on Sunday that someone broke into an apartment in a residential community owned by Midea and threatened the homeowner’s safety.
Five suspects were arrested early on Monday, the police said.
Midea Group reposted the police statement on Weibo, without elaborating.
A company representative said that the case is under investigation by the police and that Midea had no other details to share.
Midea, founded in 1968, is known for its low to medium-end appliances.
He retired as chairman in 2012, after building the company into China’s biggest exporter of air conditioners.
Worries about kidnapping have prompted more of the world’s richest people to spend millions of dollars on security over the past few years.
Walls, fences or other barriers surrounding homes of the ultra-wealthy are typically equipped with motion sensors and monitored by cameras that can be programmed to recognize certain faces, while some are tailed by bodyguards at all hours.
Typical measures inside residences can include ballistic windows and safe rooms, as well as reinforced doors, walls and locks.
BACKLASH: The National Party quit its decades-long partnership with the Liberal Party after their election loss to center-left Labor, which won a historic third term Australia’s National Party has split from its conservative coalition partner of more than 60 years, the Liberal Party, citing policy differences over renewable energy and after a resounding loss at a national election this month. “Its time to have a break,” Nationals leader David Littleproud told reporters yesterday. The split shows the pressure on Australia’s conservative parties after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s center-left Labor party won a historic second term in the May 3 election, powered by a voter backlash against US President Donald Trump’s policies. Under the long-standing partnership in state and federal politics, the Liberal and National coalition had shared power
CONTROVERSY: During the performance of Israel’s entrant Yuval Raphael’s song ‘New Day Will Rise,’ loud whistles were heard and two people tried to get on stage Austria’s JJ yesterday won the Eurovision Song Contest, with his operatic song Wasted Love triumphing at the world’s biggest live music television event. After votes from national juries around Europe and viewers from across the continent and beyond, JJ gave Austria its first victory since bearded drag performer Conchita Wurst’s 2014 triumph. After the nail-biting drama as the votes were revealed running into yesterday morning, Austria finished with 436 points, ahead of Israel — whose participation drew protests — on 357 and Estonia on 356. “Thank you to you, Europe, for making my dreams come true,” 24-year-old countertenor JJ, whose
A documentary whose main subject, 25-year-old photojournalist Fatima Hassouna, was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza weeks before it premiered at Cannes stunned viewers into silence at the festival on Thursday. As the cinema lights came back on, filmmaker Sepideh Farsi held up an image of the young Palestinian woman killed with younger siblings on April 16, and encouraged the audience to stand up and clap to pay tribute. “To kill a child, to kill a photographer is unacceptable,” Farsi said. “There are still children to save. It must be done fast,” the exiled Iranian filmmaker added. With Israel
NO EXCUSES: Marcos said his administration was acting on voters’ demands, but an academic said the move was emotionally motivated after a poor midterm showing Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr yesterday sought the resignation of all his Cabinet secretaries, in a move seen as an attempt to reset the political agenda and assert his authority over the second half of his single six-year term. The order came after the president’s allies failed to win a majority of Senate seats contested in the 12 polls on Monday last week, leaving Marcos facing a divided political and legislative landscape that could thwart his attempts to have an ally succeed him in 2028. “He’s talking to the people, trying to salvage whatever political capital he has left. I think it’s
RSS