‘We might never see them again’: parents of British man murdered by Chinese wife fight for custody of his children
The children, seven-year-old Jack and six-year-old Alice, who are reportedly unaware that dad Michael Simpson is dead, and now live with their maternal grandparents in China
The parents of a British man who was murdered by his Chinese wife have asked the British foreign secretary, Jeremy Hunt, to appeal to Chinese officials to let his children live with them in Britain – otherwise, they say, they might never see their grandchildren again.
Michael Simpson, 34, originally from Wimborne, Dorset, was stabbed to death by his estranged wife, Weiwei Fu, in Shanghai in March 2017. Earlier in July, she was sentenced to life in prison.
Their children, seven-year-old Jack and six-year-old Alice, who are reportedly unaware their father is dead, are now living with their maternal grandparents in China and have become the focus of a custody battle.
Ian and Linda Simpson, the children’s grandparents, want the siblings to move to Britain where, they say, they will have a better life and education. A custody hearing in China is expected to take place in the coming weeks, and Simpson’s family want Hunt to intervene in the case during his visit this weekend to China.
Ian Simpson said he had received assurances through a third party the foreign secretary would raise the case during his visit. The British Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has not yet responded to The Guardian’s request to confirm this.