New | Wronged Chinese ex-convict loses compensation cash in fraudulent investment

Freedom has not been easy for Chinese resident Zhao Zuohai, who was released three years ago after being wrongly imprisoned for 11 years.

The man, from a village in Shangqiu, Henan province, recently lost what was left of his 650,000 yuan (HK$253,000) compensation in a fraudulent investment and is now in the hospital after a fall, the Legal Evening News reported.

“I never thought I would end up like this after getting compensated for my 11 years of wrongful imprisonment,” Zhao said. “I don’t have money, I’m old, I can’t find work.”

Zhao said he used the money to support his family and to start a hotel business that ultimately failed. Three years ago, he invested the remaining 200,000 yuan in a company that promised a two per cent return every month.

People warned him of the risks, Zhao said, but his investment doubled in three years. He reinvested all his earnings into the firm, hoping it would soon enable him to buy a house. But in November, the firm was found to be a fraud, and those in charge either ran away or were arrested.

In 1999, Zhao was accused of murdering a fellow Shangqiu villager who had gone missing after the two had a violent argument. Police officers tortured Zhao into confession to the crime, but 11 years later, the villager turned up alive to seek social welfare.