A graduate from Tsinghua University’s class of 2026, who recently moved to the UK to pursue a master’s degree at University College London (UCL), has gone missing under suspicious circumstances. His family suspects he may have fallen victim to a telecommunications fraud scheme that involved scammers impersonating British immigration officials, resulting in the loss of 450,000 RMB (approximately $62,000).
Following the alarming situation, the family has reported the incident to the UK police, while UCL has also initiated contact with law enforcement to assist in the investigation.
According to reports, the missing individual, identified only as Shi, hails from Nantong, Jiangsu Province. Shi graduated in 2026 with a major in chemistry from Tsinghua University and went to study for a master’s in organic chemistry with a focus on drug discovery at UCL in September this year. He was residing in the student accommodation known as Beaumont Court.
Shi’s mother, Ms. Liao, revealed that on October 19, her son contacted the family and stated that he had been selected for a random check by British immigration officers. He claimed he had even been taken to a police station and was asked to provide proof of savings amounting to no less than £70,000.
In his panic, Shi mentioned that he had gone to the student center to confirm these events with a faculty member, who allegedly made a call to the immigration department and verified that the investigation was indeed real. Consequently, on October 20, Ms. Liao transferred 650,000 RMB to one of Shi’s bank accounts in China to assist him in obtaining the supposed proof of funds.
For a period, communication with Shi was normal, and on October 31, he even held a video call with his family to celebrate his birthday—during which no signs of distress were noted.
However, on the afternoon of November 1, local police officers from Jiangsu visited Shi’s parents to inform them that the Beijing Anti-Fraud Center had detected multiple suspicious large transactions from Shi’s bank account. They suspected he had fallen victim to a network fraud scheme.
Family sources stated that another Chinese bank card belonging to Shi had transferred 250,000 RMB and 100,000 RMB to the same account on October 25 and 26, respectively. On October 31, another transfer of 100,000 RMB was made to a different account, totaling 450,000 RMB.
Around 5:25 PM on the same day, the family, acting on police advice, managed to establish a video call with Shi. During the conversation, he claimed he was in his dormitory and explained the transfers as a currency exchange for his roommate, who had given him the money for withdrawal.
At that moment, Shi offered to show his bank account balance, but the video feed abruptly went dark. The police advised him to maintain the call and not turn off the camera. Minutes later, the call was inexplicably cut off, leaving the family unable to reach him directly thereafter.
Ms. Liao expressed her growing concern and instructed family members to contact Shi’s roommate in the UK to check on his whereabouts. When they entered his room with the help of dormitory staff, it was evident that Shi was missing, as his passport, wallet, and computer were all gone. Subsequent assistance from the dormitory staff led to the police being alerted.
In light of Shi’s disappearance, the family has taken additional precautions, such as lowering the limit on his credit card to prevent further unauthorized transactions.
Reportedly, on the evening of November 1, the family discovered a failed transaction on Shi’s credit card. The bank’s credit card center indicated that the transaction attempt was made through a travel booking site. On November 2, following a report to the authorities, it was confirmed that the attempted purchase involved a plane ticket to Cambodia.
Further investigation revealed that on November 1 at 7:22 PM, there was an unsuccessful transaction attempt for 11,532 Hong Kong dollars due to an account status issue.
On November 2, another failed transaction occurred at 5:45 PM for a sum of 1,123.5 GBP, also linked to the travel booking site, though the destination could not be verified.
Amid the turmoil, Shi’s father continued to send emails to his son’s frequently used email account. At 4:33 PM on November 2, he received a reply purportedly from Shi’s email, stating: “I am safe, I have been scammed, and I’m sorry for you all. I just want to be alone for a while.”
However, the family noted that Shi had never communicated via email before, raising their suspicions. When they accessed his email account, they found that his inbox had been cleared just five minutes after logging in, leading them to doubt the authenticity of the email and whether Shi had sent it of his own volition.
Approximately 20 minutes after receiving the email, the family detected yet another suspicious transaction attempt on Shi’s credit card, increasing their worry that he was under manipulation by fraudsters.
In response to this troubling incident, the family has reported the situation to the UK police and communicated with the administration at University College London.
According to reports, an email sent to the family from UCL’s Crime Prevention team conveyed that the university had alerted the authorities about the situation and would provide further updates following law enforcement’s response.
On the evening of November 2, around 11 PM, the family received a call from the UK police, informing them that measures had been taken to monitor border crossings. Shortly after, at 11:53 PM, they received another email from UCL confirming that the university had indeed been in contact with the police.
Currently, the family is also utilizing resources such as the Chinese Embassy in the UK, Tsinghua University alumni networks, and groups of students studying abroad to aid in their search for Shi.