Between 2021 and 2024, female police officer Yan from the Criminal Investigation Brigade in Dingyuan County purchased tobacco, tea, and alcohol on credit from 13 individual households. One contract even had the official seal of the brigade, while she also swindled two individuals for their alcohol fees, totaling up to 7 million yuan. Yan was convicted of fraud and sentenced to 8 years in prison, but the victims have yet to recover their losses. They demand accountability from the county public security bureau, but the bureau has been passing the blame. People are questioning if even contracts stamped with seals can be trusted in the future.
On June 8th, in Anhui Province’s Chuzhou City, individual resident Huang reported to the media that he and several other households are still waiting to recover the losses from the millions worth of tobacco and alcohol purchased on credit by a female police officer.
According to reports from The Paper, multiple individual households in Chuzhou City, Anhui, revealed that Yan owed them money for tobacco, tea, and alcohol purchases. One contract for 4.44 million yuan (with 1.99 million yet to be repaid) bore the stamp of the Criminal Investigation Brigade. However, the county public security bureau stated that Yan stamped the seal without authorization.
Individual households Yan Hu and Zhiqiang told The Paper that they have IOUs from Yan, while Huang Baohou possesses a “supply contract” signed by Yan using the seal of the Criminal Investigation Brigade of Dingyuan County Public Security Bureau. Huang believes that the bureau should bear responsibility for mismanagement and demands they take joint liability.
Recently, the Dingyuan County Public Security Bureau responded, stating that Yan falsely claimed to need alcohol for entertaining guests on behalf of the brigade to purchase 4.44 million yuan worth of tobacco, tea, and alcohol from Huang Baohou. She signed contracts and stamped the seal in the brigade’s name to gain trust. Currently, Yan has yet to return 1.99 million yuan. The bureau stated they never authorized Yan to purchase these goods, labeling it as her personal fraud with no evidence of the bureau’s obligation to pay.
Local court officials handling the case mentioned that in January, the court’s enforcement department initiated proceedings at Huang Baohou’s request to recover illegally obtained gains. As of June 8th, the enforcement is ongoing, with other pending cases against Yan.
A court judgment obtained by The Paper revealed that Yan was born in 1987 and was arrested in September 2024. Apart from the 13 individual households, Yan also duped auxiliary police officer Lu out of 24,000 yuan for alcohol and tricked resident Huang out of 37,000 yuan worth of liquor under the guise of erasing a drunk driving record, totaling approximately 3.56 million yuan from 15 victims.
A review by the media found that Yan’s case involved nearly 7 million yuan, with 3.56 million yuan still outstanding at the time of sentencing.
On June 8th, the topic labeled “Female Police Officer Swindles 15 People for 7 Million Yuan in Tobacco, Tea, and Alcohol Purchases” trended on Weibo.
Netizens expressed frustration, criticizing the lack of oversight that allowed individuals like Yan to take advantage of the system. They called for stricter punishment for law enforcement officials who break the law to maintain public trust and integrity. Many questioned who would compensate the victims’ losses if the public security bureau continues to deny responsibility, emphasizing the substantial impact these losses have on the victims’ livelihoods. The plight of these individual households highlights the challenges they face in seeking justice and restitution.