Lai Changxing

Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji, known for his anti-corruption stand and for repeatedly saying publicly that Lai needs to be executed, actually met Lai twice. In one meeting an offer was made for Lai to pay US$125 million in exchange for amnesty. This suggested the entire government knew of Lai's corruption for a long time. Lai also gave money to Zhu Niuniu, son of former deputy commander of China's 31st army from Xiamen. Zhu constantly threatened to expose Lai's smuggling if he did not help him with his financial problem from gambling at the Macau casinos.

On May 18, 2012, Lai Changxing was sentenced to life imprisonment on charges of smuggling and bribery by the Intermediate People's Court in Xiamen. In addition, all of his property was confiscated.

Lai evaded Chinese authorities and went to Canada, where he resided in Vancouver, British Columbia. After a lengthy extradition battle and diplomatic negotiations, Canadian authorities deported him to China on July 22, 2011, upon promises that he would not be executed. He was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2012.

On July 8, 2011, John Baird, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Canada, said that, the extradition of Lai must be conducted using Canadian laws. In early stages, Lai's Refugee Application was refused, with the possibility of extradition to China.

On July 22, 2011, Lai Changxing was extradited to China. He was escorted to Vancouver International Airport and boarded Air Canada flight 29 (AC 29) bound for Beijing. He was later transferred to Chinese custody on July 23, 2011, and signed an arrest warrant issued for his arrest upon his arrival in Beijing. Spokesman of the Chinese ministry of foreign affairs has expressed satisfaction concerning this decision, referring to Lai as responsible for the "biggest economic crime in the history of the People's Republic of China."

On February 3, 2009, the Canadian Government granted Lai a work permit. Canadian officials acknowledged that Lai did not have access to the vast fortune they thought he had upon arrival in Canada back in 1999. Lai has said his legal and living expenses were being funded by friends, whom he has declined to identify, saying they could be in danger if the Chinese government knew their names.

Lai divorced his wife in June 2005. In 2009 Lai was granted a working permit and worked at a Vancouver real-estate company as a consultant.

Nevertheless, Lai has repeatedly been denied political refugee status in Canada, for example by a ruling in September 2005 by the Supreme Court in Ottawa, Ontario. This affirmed the decision of the Federal Court of Appeal, which in April had refused to hear Lai's appeal of the June 2002 Refugee Board decision, on the grounds that Lai and his wife failed to meet the standards to be designated as refugees.

The family used a HKSAR passport to emigrate to Canada. Following heavy pressure from Beijing, Lai's Hong Kong permanent residency and HKSAR passport were revoked in 2002 by the Hong Kong Government, saying that he obtained the status dishonestly.

Lai's corruption is known to have reached the top levels of the Chinese government. He has publicly declared in the past that if he returned to China: "many high government officials will not be able to sleep. Incidents will happen." In relation to the case, 14 people have already been executed, about 300 provincial officials have already been put on trial. Since 2002 Beijing sent MSS agents to follow him wherever he went.

Lai fled to Canada with his wife Zeng Mingna (曾明娜 ) and children in August 1999. He paid US$1 million in cash for a house in South Granville Rise Vancouver. His kids went to private schools at a cost of US$4,000 a year and his wife opened a bank account with a deposit of US$1.5 million. They were chauffeur-driven around in a US$90,000 SUV. In 1999 he was detained, apparently caught on a 28-day gambling spree at Casino Niagara in Niagara Falls. Lai was a regular customer at the casino where at one time bought as much as US$3 million worth of chips. Canadian police noticed him and suspected he was involved in money laundering or loan-sharking. Lai and his family then made a claim to stay in Canada as refugees.

Despite Lai's departure for Canada, the Chinese government continued to pursue charges against him, and sought his extradition. In the same corruption case, one of the largest in modern Chinese history, many high-level municipal and provincial officials were sacked and a few were sentenced to life in prison or death. The complex smuggling case shifted the entire political scene in Fujian by the late 1990s. A special task force operation was created by the government to track down Lai on April 20, 1999, called "4.20" (420专案组) with about 1200 investigators.

In 1996 Xiamen airport's terminal building 2, funded by Lai, was one of the biggest airport structure in the country. In 1997 Xiamen's party secretary even made him an honorary citizen (厦门荣誉市民 ). In 1998 he spent two million yuan to purchase a football team based in Foshan, Guangzhou and disbanded the team. He then moved all the players to Xiamen to create the Xiamen Lanshi F.C., and helped the team promote to the Chinese Super League. He even made his own film starring himself as a football star to improve his image.

In 1994 Lai founded Fairwell Group, also known as Yuanhua Group (远华集团有限公司 ), a prominent group of upstart companies that took advantage of the economic boom of Xiamen's status as a Special Economic Zone. The group was heavily involved in the importing/smuggling of cars, cigarettes and oil. The group invested heavily in the city's real estate, hotels, clubs, roads and other infrastructure. Lai also has his own brand of Fairwell cigarettes.

Lai resided in Fujian province before he moved to Hong Kong in April 1991. While he was in HK, the Chinese government pursued him. Lai explained to the HK Immigration Department that he was in HK because he was a friend of Leung Kam-kwong, a senior immigration officer who later died in honor during the Immigration Tower fire in 2000. Leung apparently secretly warned Lai about the immigration department's pending warrant for his arrest. Leung also suggested Lai move to Canada to escape arrest. However, the HK government later responded that the claim was totally baseless as the officer was already dead and could not defend himself against these accusations.

In 1990 Lai tried to run a business to import duty-free TVs, where he made thousands. Two government officials from Shaocuo demanded fees be paid to them. When Lai refused, the two officials went to his house. At the time Lai was not home, but his sister was. The officials asked for business accounts, but she refused to give in. She was then beaten severely and sent to the hospital. The officials then started a tax fraud case. Lai would win in court, but his revenge campaign against Communist officials would tie up his businesses. Lai left Shaocuo and from this point on.

In the mid 1990s Xiamen no longer regulated maximum building heights. Many rich businessmen tried to build the tallest skyscrapers. Lai built the 88-floor Yuanhua tower and the Yuanhua International Centre with a groundbreaking ceremony attended by 2000 guests. Each guest received a 3000-yuan red envelope. Lai had prominent connections with the Fujian power elite; he was also a member of the Provincial Consultative Conference.

Lai himself was an apprentice to then General secretary Jiang Zemin. At the height of Lai's corruption in the 1990s, the Fujian party chief was Jia Qinglin. Xi Jinping, now CPC General Secretary, was the Fujian governor.

Lai Changxing (born September 15, 1958) is a former Chinese businessman and entrepreneur. He was the founder and Chairman of Yuanhua Group, based in the Special Economic Zone of Xiamen. He imported foreign products like cars, cigarettes and was responsible for one-sixth of the national oil imports at one time. In the late 1990s, he was implicated in corruption scandals involving a large smuggling ring. By 1999, he was described by several media organizations as "China's most wanted fugitive".

Lai was the eldest child born to Lai Yongdeng and Wang Zhuzhi in Jinjiang, Fujian province in 1958, the year the Great Leap Forward began. He was the first of eight children. He grew up in Shaocuo village (烧厝村 ). He would have starved to death during the Great China famine but luckily in Jinjiang and the rest of south-eastern Fujian the situation was greatly milder due to massive overseas Chinese donations and better leadership (unlike Tingzhou where about 100,000 Hakkas starved to death due to the Great Famine), his family also survived because his father converted a swamp into a personal vegetable field during the most difficult years. Lai received almost no formal education as he spent one year in school before the Cultural Revolution shut his school down. According to some sources Lai received three years of education.