Caught on film: Chinese farmer-turned-director, suspected of affray in 2000, arrested on eve of debut cinema release

A Chinese farmer-turned-film director, who raised millions of yuan in funding to produce a film based on his life, was caught by police 16 years after allegedly taking part in a fight between armed gangs, mainland media reports.

The man, 34, identified only by his surname Ceng, was arrested over his suspected involvement in the 2000 crime just as his film, My Dream, which he also wrote, was about to be shown in mainland cinemas, the online news outlet ThePaper.cn reported on Tuesday.

The huge media coverage about Ceng – the former farmer with a passion for film making – led to his arrest last month.

Prosecutors in Cangnan county, in southeast coastal Zhejiang province, told media in May that Ceng had been detained on a charge of affray after being at large for 16 years.

Ceng, a native of a rural county in southwest Chongqing municipality, was accused of taking part in a fight with a rival gang, involving the use of knives and batons, in Cangnan county when he was a migrant worker aged 18.

He reportedly escaped after the fight, but four other members of the gang were jailed over the incident.