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Warning: This article contains content of suicide.
A 20-year-old Chinese student fell to her death from the 39th floor of her condominium in Selangor, Malaysia, after being mentally tortured by scammers who convinced her she was wanted for murdering an elderly woman.
Here’s what happened.
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Chinese National Targeted in Elaborate Scam Operation
20-year-old Li Bowen had arrived in Malaysia on 13 March to begin her studies.
She received a call on 18 Mar 2025 from a man claiming to be Officer Du Feng from the Shanghai Public Security Bureau’s Hongkou branch.
The caller accused Li of being a major suspect in a criminal group and implicated her in the murder of an elderly woman.
The scammer told Li she needed to pay RMB 258,000 (approximately SGD 48,000) to prove her innocence or face extradition back to China, where she would serve at least one year in prison.
To make their story more convincing, the scammers told Li that her movements were being monitored 24/7.
They maintained constant psychological pressure by keeping her in near-continuous video communication for four days, from 18 Mar to 22 Mar.
When Li left her apartment, she was forced to report her whereabouts in detail to the scammers.
They also made her write a 500-word confession letter, where she begged for a thorough investigation to clear her name.
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Tragic Outcome After Days of Psychological Torture
Unable to cope with the immense pressure and unwilling to burden her family, Li jumped from the 39th floor of her rented apartment on 22 Mar 2025, landing on the 6th floor.
Before taking her life, Li had reached out to her mother in Shandong, China, asking vaguely about their family savings.
“She asked me about the savings I had. I did not give her any money because I didn’t know what happened,” Li’s mother told reporters.
Li sent her mother a handwritten letter requesting that she send RMB 258,000 for an “emergency,” and mentioned she had signed a confidentiality agreement that prevented her from sharing details.
Li’s mother immediately suspected her daughter was being scammed after reading the letter.
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She attempted to call Li on 22 Mar 2025 but could not reach her. The letter became Li’s final communication with her family.
“My daughter was brainwashed by the fake police. She trusted the scammer but not her mum,” Li’s mother said.
Li’s parents arrived in Malaysia on 23 Mar 2025 after receiving news of their daughter’s death.
Her father stated that the family plans to take her body back to China for burial as soon as possible.
He has also called on the Chinese Embassy in Malaysia to help pressure Malaysian police to investigate the case and bring justice for his daughter.
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