Last year, the Shandong Jianghaihui Group collapsed, implicated in a 20 billion RMB scandal affecting over 60,000 families. With the group's chairman and his wife fleeing to the United States, victims, left with no recourse, are increasingly seeking public attention. Several depositors who forwarded foreign media reports or gave interviews have recently been administratively detained by police, accused of being exploited by anti-China forces abroad. This has further fueled public concern about the Chinese authorities' efforts to block information and control speech.
Ms. Wang, one of the victims of the Jianghaihui case, declined to disclose her full name for security reasons. In an interview with Radio Free Asia on Wednesday (April 30), she revealed that more than a dozen depositors in Weifang, Zaozhuang, and other places have been administratively detained by local police for sharing foreign media reports in groups or privately, or for having been interviewed by Radio Free Asia. "Everyone here who had contacted you has been detained. They say we're being used by international anti-China forces and that we're all committing crimes. They (the police) used news posted on major (overseas) websites to detain more than a dozen people, including some from other provinces and cities, and some who had recommended (the shared reports) to each other. The Public Security Bureau showed me (the reports) and said they were anti-China forces."
Following the collapse of Jianghaihui Group, Chairman An Zhibin and his wife, Zhou Chunwei, were accused of traveling to the United States under the protection of local government officials, leaving over 60,000 victims' families suffering heavy losses. Despite repeated requests for official disclosure of the case and the recovery of their funds, victims have been repeatedly summoned, detained, and placed under surveillance by public security authorities.
Another unnamed Ms. Zhang told this station that most of the detainees are women: "Some have been released two weeks ago, and a few have not yet been released. The detainees said they didn't know they were being interviewed by journalists, and they said they were in contact with lawyers in Beijing. We all said we believed lawyers could help us seek justice and recover the money we were defrauded of, so we all said that. The police also refused to allow us to contact anti-China forces abroad. I said, if you (the government) don't do those things, how can we be exploited by others? I said I just wanted to get the message out to see if you (the police) are breaking the law. As for whether it's 'anti-China,' I don't understand."
Our station called the Weifang and Zaozhuang Public Security Bureaus in Shandong Province respectively, trying to get information about the detainees, but no one answered the phone.
Victims' open letter accuses the case of misclassification
The victims have appealed to the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and Supervision of the Communist Party of China and the Ministry of Public Security, demanding a thorough investigation of the case, the recovery of over 20 billion yuan involved, and the legal protection of their legitimate rights and interests. According to information provided by the victims, they criticize the Shandong police's characterization of the Jianghaihui case as "illegal absorption of public deposits," which is a serious error, emphasizing that the case should be considered "contract fraud." The open letter states: "The Jianghaihui case presented by the Economic Investigation (police) is inconsistent with the facts in some respects, causing great harm to us victims... The procedures are illegal. Before the case was even filed, the Shandong Provincial Public Security Department subjectively designated it as 'illegal absorption of public deposits' and designed a 'illegal absorption of public deposits' form for victims to fill out... The content is also illegal. Jianghaihui Group holds six official government-issued financial business licenses, pays taxes annually, and passes annual inspections..."
The letter also questioned: "Where is illegal fundraising encouraged by government policies? Where is illegal fundraising where the government participates in operations and officials support it? And where is illegal fundraising where the government collects deposits?"
Victims emphasized that Jianghaihui's "emergency loan transfer" business was originally government-led, intended to help private enterprises overcome financial difficulties. Citing relevant documents jointly issued by multiple Shandong provincial government departments, they pointed out that the local government not only failed to fulfill its supervisory responsibilities but was also suspected of administrative violations. They called on the government to lend money, saying, "We trust the government and only became lenders. We hope the government will give us a fair and satisfactory outcome. 'Serving the people' cannot be just empty words! 'A safe and happy life' cannot be just a castle in the air!"
Financial companies use financing as a pretext to make money
Regarding the Jianghaihui Group's collapse, Ms. Le, a resident of Linyi, Shandong, told this station that since 2023, many fundraising companies in Shandong have collapsed due to broken funding chains, with last year being the most serious. "Many financing companies across the country have a clear purpose for absorbing funds. They use this model to raise funds in a planned manner, then transfer the funds abroad and choose the right time to flee China. Some companies even transfer assets and then send out an agent to take the blame. The people can't get their money back."
Thousands of investors' rights protection is blocked
According to our report on March 26, after the chairman of Jianghaihui Group and his wife fled to the United States, about 100,000 victims continued to defend their rights, questioning whether the police classified the case as "illegal fundraising" to evade responsibility, and planned to launch a large-scale rally.
The Jianghaihui fraud case is not an isolated incident that sparked public protests. According to the account "Mr. Li is not your teacher" on the X platform, on April 22, victims of the Zhongrong Trust bankruptcy flocked to Beijing to protest their rights. Hundreds of people were forcibly taken away by police, and some elderly people, women, and cancer patients were also treated roughly, leading to physical altercations. On March 25, victims of the Haiyin fraud case were also met with violence by authorities while protesting their rights in Shanghai.
