A man caught drink-driving in China's Henan province faked his own suicide and staged a bogus funeral in an attempt to avoid losing his licence. The man, identified only as Si in a police report, used a fridge to cool his body to fool coroners after being arrested for driving under the influence.
Elaborate deception
Si faced losing his licence, six months in prison and a hefty fine, prompting him to take drastic measures. He scattered empty medicine bottles around his house to simulate a suicide attempt. With help from his mother and sister, he posed for photos in a coffin bought online and stood inside a refrigerator to appear more corpse-like. Relatives then staged a fake funeral and buried the empty coffin, while Si fled town planning to start a new life elsewhere.
Investigation and arrest
Investigators grew suspicious because the coffin had been purchased before the alleged death, and family members had not sought emergency medical treatment. After reviewing CCTV and bank records, police determined the death was faked. Si was tracked down and arrested in April 2026 after months on the run. He was sentenced to five months in prison and fined 20,000 yuan (£2,500) in May, according to the South China Morning Post.
The prosecutor, quoted by Chinese media outlet JSJC, said: 'From repeatedly drink-driving to creating the illusion of his own death, Si believed that covering himself with a sheet and lying in a coffin would allow him to escape legal responsibility. What he failed to realise was that using a fake death to obstruct justice is not only futile, but can also lead to even more serious criminal consequences.'
