The Chinese internet celebrity “Athena Liya,” with millions of fans, went missing three years ago after being invited by her best friend to travel to Manila, Philippines. Recently, it has been confirmed that Athena was kidnapped and shortly after, she was brutally murdered and her body was abandoned.
According to reports from mainland Chinese business websites and other media outlets, “Athena Liya,” whose real name is Kong Limei, was born in Guangdong in 1995. In 2021, she participated in the Miss World Macau pageant and won third place. Since then, she has shared her luxurious lifestyle on various short video platforms, amassing millions of fans.
In early 2023, Athena met Li Yifei (also known as Li Yifei) at a brand event and they became friends. By the end of the same year, Li Yifei invited Athena to accompany her to the Philippines for a vacation to get over a breakup, promising to arrange high-end hotels and photo shoots.
However, just before their departure, Li Yifei suddenly postponed the trip claiming a family emergency, leaving Athena to contact the tour guide arranged by her upon arrival in Manila. Unfortunately, as soon as Athena got off the plane, she was taken captive by a Chinese gang in the Philippines.
After three days of being held captive, the gang contacted Athena’s family and friends through her social media accounts, falsely claiming that she had incurred a massive gambling debt at a casino and sent several photos of Athena being beaten, demanding a ransom of $800,000 (approximately 5.4 million RMB) to be transferred to a specified account.
Once the ransom was paid, instead of releasing Athena, the gang killed her and disposed of her body. Afterward, Li Yifei promptly deleted all photos with Athena, erased any traces related to her, and fled abroad.
For the next three years, the gang deliberately spread false information online claiming that Athena had been “sold to Cambodia” or “become Miss 66,” leading her family and fans to believe she was still alive.
It wasn’t until July 20th of this year when the mastermind of the international kidnapping ring, Liu Hanwen, was deported back to China from the United States. Subsequently, the police confirmed that Kong Limei and several other victims had been murdered. Another accomplice, a female named “Li Na” (original name Chen Yuxuan), was arrested in South Korea in September 2024. However, Li Yifei, who lured Athena to the Philippines, is still at large.