Chengdu dad seeks daughter he says fled to Canada with life savings

A divorced father in Chengdu has accused his teenage daughter on social media of stealing his life savings of over 3 million yuan ($469,500) and disappearing in Canada.

The father, surnamed Chai, appealed on Sina Weibo last week for help in locating his daughter and later told Red Star News, a local newspaper, that he had reported the case to police.

Chai said he saved the money to pay for his 17-year-old daughter Chai Wei to study in Canada. However, after leaving for North America, her father claims she transferred his savings to another bank account.

He said his daughter, a Sichuan University graduate, is not answering calls or messages from her family and is squandering the money in Canada with her boyfriend, surnamed Mao.

In his posts on Sina Weibo, the father revealed Chai Wei’s private information including her passport number, ID number and Sina Weibo account.

A police officer with the Shuangnan police station in Chengdu, Sichuan province, confirmed to China Daily on Thursday that police received a call from the father on Jan 12 to report his daughter for theft.

“The bank card (Chai showed to officers) was in his daughter’s name. I asked him to provide a detailed bank statement as evidence, but he never returned,” the officer said.

He added that the police currently regard the issue as a family dispute and have not filed a case against Chai Wei.

“What I have stated are all facts,” the father told Red Star News. “What father starts a scandalous rumor about his own daughter? I promise I am telling the truth, and I am willing to face legal sanctions if my reports are false.”

He told the paper Chai Wei had flown to Canada ahead of schedule on Dec 18, and that six days later he discovered his bank card was missing. He asked his daughter on WeChat but was blocked later that day, he said.

After talking to his bank, he concluded that his daughter had stolen his card, figured out his password, and transferred all the money.

The original posts by the father, which were released via someone else’s account, have been deleted from Sina Weibo.

Chai Wei has not responded publicly to the allegations.

Zhao Yimeng contributed to this story.