Chinese police find body of Didi driver suspected of killing flight attendant

Police in China’s Zhengzhou city have confirmed that the body retrieved from a local river belonged to the man suspected of killing a female flight attendant last week.

The 21-year-old woman was killed on May 6 after booking a car from China's car-hailing company Didi Chuxing in Zhengzhou, capital of Henan province. Zhengzhou police searched for the Didi driver surnamed Liu, who abandoned his vehicle and jumped into a river after allegedly killing the passenger.

At 4:30am on Saturday, police found a body in a river in Zhengzhou. DNA tests confirmed it was the suspect's body, according to the Xinhua News Agency. Didi said it had no comment when contacted on Monday.

Police have separately detained five people for spreading crime scene photographs. Images of the victim's body circulating on the internet were distributed by an auxiliary police officer, who sent photos gathered at the scene to his friends on the WeChat social media platform. The friends then forwarded the photos to more WeChat groups.

The case has drawn national attention to the safety of taking private cars booked through online ride-hailing platforms such a Didi. 

On Friday, China's Ministry of Transport announced plans to enhance regulation of the car-hailing industry, on its official WeChat account.

The notice said that any car-hailing companies or drivers who offered hailing services without approved licenses would be added to the Close Attention List or Discredit Joint Punishment Subjects List, according to Xinhua.

Didi Chuxing on Friday afternoon announced the nationwide suspension of its ride-hitching service. The service is designed for commuter to share the costs of a trip.