Tom Phillips - China chases billionaire who threatens 'explosive' allegations against elite
A flamboyant Chinese
billionaire known for his love of supercars and social media has claimed he is
the victim of a political witch hunt after he threatened to lift the lid on
“explosive information” about corruption at the top of Chinese politics. On Wednesday China’s
foreign ministry confirmed that, at Beijing’s request, Interpol had issued a
red notice for the arrest of Guo Wengui, a 50-year-old tycoon who had in recent
months taken the highly unusual step of speaking out about alleged cases of
corruption involving the relatives of senior leaders.
Lu Kang, a foreign
ministry spokesperson, described
Guo as a “suspect” but offered no further details. But citing anonymous
sources, the South China Morning Post, a Hong Kong-based newspaper to which
Beijing often hands politically sensitive scoops, claimed the
billionaire was wanted for allegedly paying a 60m yuan (£6.8m) bribe to former
spy chief Ma Jian, one of the most powerful victims of President Xi
Jinping’s high-profile war on corruption.
Guo rejected those
claims on Wednesday, in an interview with
the Chinese language service of Voice of America, claiming he was being
targeted as part of a cover-up attempt. The billionaire, who
has aired his as yet unproven allegations on his Twitter account and
in a succession of recent interviews, accused Beijing of trying to silence him
with “terror” tactics.
“I’m greatly
encouraged by the arrest notice. At least it will make people understand the
true nature of my case,” he said. “If there was no such thing as corruption in China, the government
wouldn’t become scared and frightened of me speaking the truth.” In a brief message to
the Associated Press, Guo added: “It’s all lies, all threats. It shows they are
scared of me leaking explosive information.”.. read more:
