On January 9, QQ reported that actor Wang Xing, after being successfully rescued, has not yet returned to China but is assisting Thai authorities with their investigation. The case of Wang Xing, in which he was lured and sold across the Thailand-Myanmar border, has caused a stir in China. Currently, over 500 families of missing victims are submitting rescue requests.
According to QQ, based on information provided by the victims’ families, police have identified a suspect named Yan Shi Liu, who is accused of tricking more than 500 lesser-known artists into going to Thailand to shoot films. Investigation revealed that the individual’s real name is Yan Jun Feng.
In 2015, Yan Shi Liu began working at Hengdian World Studios in Zhejiang, China, the largest film studio in the world. Initially, he worked as a martial arts stunt performer, but later moved to behind-the-scenes roles, posing as a recruiter for extras and minor actors to gather personal information.
Currently, Hengdian has about 200,000 unknown actors every day waiting for opportunities. Due to the decline of the film industry caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and other factors, income for extras has decreased. Taking advantage of their desperation to make money and achieve success, Yan Shi Liu introduced the opportunity to film in Thailand.
It promised free travel, accommodation and living expenses covered by film crews, attracting many victims, including actors, make-up artists, models and lighting technicians. Once they arrived in Thailand they lost all contact with the outside world.
QQ reports that Yan Jun Feng’s longtime work at Hengdian has made him well acquainted with struggling extras, the ones at the heart of the entertainment industry. He exploited their lack of knowledge and strong desire for a better life to find victims.
Currently, Yan Jun Feng has fled abroad and his whereabouts are unknown. Media investigations into his social media accounts revealed that Yan Jun Feng posed as a professional middleman for film crew jobs to deceive naive actors.
There is speculation that Yan Jun Feng may be directly involved in a larger human trafficking network. However, he could also be a victim himself, whose identity was exploited by the criminal organization to commit further scams.
On social media, the public is urging Chinese authorities to crack down on this scam network that tricks artists into going abroad for film projects, only to be sold. Repeated cases of Chinese artists falling into these traps highlight the existence of an underground criminal group in the country.
