At the beginning of 2026, a sudden death of a student in a mainland campus once again made headlines, with the school hastily removing the body and blocking parents from seeing their child’s remains. This news has sparked widespread attention, with many internet influencers voicing their concerns and calling for the truth to be uncovered.
On January 8th, a male freshman at “Today is Tsinghua Garden Senior High School” in Xincai County, Henan Province, suddenly died on campus. Before the parents arrived at the school, the school authorities attempted to take the body away. The parents accused the school on social media of obstructing their access to their child’s remains. They also disclosed that the child had blood at the corner of his mouth and a nail-sized hole in his heart area. Videos related to the incident went viral online but were subsequently taken down across various platforms.
Various theories regarding the cause of the student’s death have emerged online, including organ trafficking, blood extraction at school, and conflicts among roommates. Many individuals visited the scene to investigate and shared their findings on social media.
On January 10th, a local resident informed Dajiyuan that he had seen the child’s relatives the night before and noticed many unusual aspects. He mentioned, “This was a junior high school boarder; in the morning, he was in bad shape with injuries, and the school wouldn’t let the parents see him. The school has been covering up; even the dormitory beds were empty.”
Regarding the student’s cause of death, the local resident stated, “Currently, the child’s relatives are also unclear. They can only wait at the school gate. Now, there are special police officers at the school gate. The family should seek forensic examination. This situation is too heartbreaking.”
Another local resident introduced by Dajiyuan reported that the student died because he got into a fight with other kids in the dormitory and was beaten with a steel pipe until (he died). The teachers were unaware, and by the time they arrived, the child had no signs of life.
A resident living near the school also mentioned, “Everyone couldn’t turn a blind eye and was assisting in spreading the news. Many people went to the scene to show support. I was there in the morning, and by the afternoon, the school surroundings were cordoned off, with special police officers everywhere.”
Another local resident informed Dajiyuan, “The family still hasn’t been given an explanation. I saw the relatives at the scene; they are devastated. The roads are blocked now, and we can’t enter. In the morning, there were around 1800 people.”
The Xincai County Education Bureau released a notice on January 9th, stating that an accidental death occurred at “Today is Tsinghua Garden School” in Xincai County on January 8th, attracting public attention. “After the incident, the public security organs intervened in the investigation for the first time. Following preliminary investigations including autopsy, on-site examination, questioning, video retrieval, and medical history inquiries, criminal cases have been ruled out. Currently, efforts are being made to handle aftermath procedures.”
Regarding the Bureau’s notice, internet influencer Song Zude commented, “The county education bureau’s release of the situation report has no legal effect; it’s just one-sided. It is the report published by the public security organ. It needs to present the forensic identification report and be under the supervision of the supervisory body. Legal procedures cannot be skipped. What qualification does an education bureau have to say ‘criminal cases have been ruled out’? Are they an investigative department?”
He believes that the school falls under the jurisdiction of the education bureau, which speaks for the school and not for the parents. The parents were pitifully accusing at the scene. The school didn’t disclose the cause of the child’s death or allow the parents to see him. When they finally did, they weren’t allowed to get close, and they found blood at the corner of the child’s mouth and a hole in the heart area.
Local netizens revealed that before the parents arrived, the school tried to take the student away in a vehicle that wasn’t from the local ambulance service but from another county. Moreover, there is a hospital just four hundred meters away from the school.
In response, Song Zude said, “Was the child’s heart still beating? Had the child already died? Was the child in temporary shock? These things need to be clarified. We have reason to question whether there are bad actors trying to take the child’s organs.”
He also questioned, “Why didn’t this hospital near the school come to pick up the person?”
Mr. Xu from Shandong believes that the official response was too slow and concise, failing to provide a reasonable explanation for everyone’s doubts. Rumors are rife now, saying all sorts of things. If the authorities want to stop the spread, they should present an official investigation, not just a simple statement like “criminal cases ruled out.”
Mr. Xu also disclosed, “The parents said their child had a rare blood type, which has angered many. He urged, “The authorities must quickly provide convincing evidence.”
Currently, the incident of the sudden death of a male high school student in Henan’s Xincai County continues to escalate, with social media busy deleting posts and netizens busy creating various videos discussing the incident.
Former CCTV producer Gong Lijun produced a video program titled “Xincai student death, what is accidental death?” questioning the official statement “accidental death, criminal cases ruled out.” In the video, he explained that accidental death involves unexpected unfortunate factors causing non-natural death, emphasizing the importance of studying accidental deaths for prevention and reduction.
However, this program content has been removed from his personal social media channels.
Regarding the hole in the heart area of the deceased student, some netizens mentioned, “One crucial step in organ harvesting surgery is to create a hole in the heart area, medically known as aortic root cannulation, to infuse protective fluid to temporarily stop the heart’s beating, pause time, and prevent organ necrosis due to lack of oxygen.”
A netizen in Cambodia with an IP address commented, “This hole is for a chest tube that can cause instant death.”
Another netizen shared a screenshot of a conversation among students, with one person stating, “Many say it’s because their school organized medical examinations some time ago, and this student was a match, so the school secretly got rid of him.”
“At first, the school wanted to deceive students by saying he died by jumping off a building due to academic pressure, but those who suspected immediately noticed something was wrong. Who knows? Anyway, that’s what I heard from others.”
Currently, the attention on the sudden death of the male student in Henan continues to grow like a snowball effect.