Under the coordinated efforts of the Ministry of Public Security, on July 20th, as a civilian airliner landed at Beijing Capital International Airport, the main suspect in the cross-border kidnapping and murder of Chinese citizens, Liu Mouwen, was handed over to Chinese police.
On June 20, 2024, a Chinese citizen named Xia and a Chinese-American named Sun were introduced to travel to Manila, Philippines, for medical business negotiations. They were then kidnapped by a criminal gang. After the victims’ families paid a ransom of 3 million yuan, the two were still brutally killed on June 24th, their bodies discovered in Camarines Sur Province, Philippines.
This case exposed the risks of a black market industry chain targeting Chinese executives working abroad. After the incident, Philippine police identified eight suspects, including 5 foreign nationals and 3 Filipino citizens.
Earlier public reports focused heavily on a medical equipment dealer named “Li Na,” but did not mention anyone with the surname Liu. Public channels have not yet revealed much about Liu’s personal background or his relationship with Li Na. Victims’ families learned from Philippine police that “Li Na” was arrested in Seoul, South Korea, on September 22 of that year. Insiders say “Li Na” was involved in more than one kidnapping case.
After investigation, Liu Mouwen was found to be a major suspect behind the scenes. He fled to the United States shortly after the crime. According to reports, the Beijing Public Security Bureau, under the command of the Ministry of Public Security, conducted meticulous investigations and found that the criminal gang led by Liu Mouwen frequently committed serious crimes such as kidnapping and murder against Chinese citizens in the Philippines. These cases were extremely severe and had a terrible social impact.
The Ministry of Public Security attached great importance to the case and worked closely with law enforcement agencies in the United States, the Philippines, and South Korea to fully investigate the case.
The Ministry of Public Security assembled elite teams to focus on the case, issued a Red Notice through Interpol, and conducted multiple exchanges of case information and evidence sharing with the U.S. Department of Justice, the FBI, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement. They worked hard to push for the arrest and extradition of Liu Mouwen by the U.S. side. Based on our leads and evidence, the U.S. side successfully arrested him in October 2024 and extradited him back to China today.
A spokesperson from the Ministry of Public Security said the successful resolution of the Liu Mouwen serial kidnapping and murder case is the latest result of implementing the important consensus reached at the China-U.S. summit, and another successful example of joint cross-border crime fighting. Public security authorities firmly uphold the security interests of Chinese citizens. No matter where criminals commit crimes against Chinese citizens, Chinese police will crack down on them legally, relentlessly, and to the end.