BANGKOK: A statement from the Chinese Embassy in Phnom Penh on Monday (Jan 5), said that a well-known Chinese influencer who was allegedly lured to Cambodia with promises of a high-paying job, has ended up homeless.
According to the Khmer Times in Cambodia the young influencer, who had around 58,000 followers, was found in a condition that bore little resemblance to her glamorous online image.
The case has become a major story in China, beginning with the disappearance of “Umi”, her stage name.
The woman in her 20s told her family she was going to Cambodia after being invited by her Chinese boyfriend, who lives there, to build a prosperous future together.
After 26 days with no contact, she was found on a roadside in Cambodia, apparently living rough.
She was holding X-ray films that indicated injuries to both legs, with visible signs of assault, and appeared disoriented and incoherent.
A Chinese national in the area reportedly stepped in to help.
Earlier, her family had sought assistance from the Chinese Embassy in Phnom Penh.
The embassy acted quickly, contacting multiple parties, including Cambodian police and local contacts, to trace her whereabouts. The consular office in Sihanoukville later found her on Saturday afternoon (Jan 3) at a hospital, where she was described as being in very poor physical condition.
Officials arranged for her transfer to another hospital for urgent treatment, and said she would be repatriated once her condition stabilised.
Before this ordeal, the woman, identified only as having the surname Wu, was known for posting a lavish “lifestyle” online and was said to have worked at an upscale club in Fujian province.
In early December last year, she livestreamed and posted on social media that her Chinese boyfriend, who worked in Cambodia, had invited her to join him there.
She also boasted that he ran a sizeable business and was serious about their relationship, saying he wanted her to live with him.
Despite warnings from people around her and from fans, she went.
Chinese social media users were stunned by her latest photos, with many saying they could barely imagine what she had been through and how she could have ended up in such a state, and expressing heartbreak for her family. - The Nation/ANN
