Shangguan Zhengyi reported a baby-trafficking case in Huaihua City, Hunan Province, but was instead detained at a police station as a suspect. (Image captured from Bilibili)
[People News] A shocking incident in China has once again exposed the deep collusion between law enforcement and crime. As one popular saying goes, “In the past, bandits hid in the mountains; now, bandits wear police uniforms.” It aptly describes a grim reality under CCP rule: many criminal groups operate under the protection of local public security bureaus.
Despite China having the highest density of surveillance cameras in the world, cases involving missing students or abducted children are often met with police indifference—or outright refusal to file reports. Even more outrageously, citizens who bravely capture human traffickers risk being detained themselves as “suspects.”
On November 1, a well-known anti-trafficking activist from Sichuan named Shangguan Zhengyi—who independently investigates surrogacy and child trafficking networks—was detained by police in Huaihua, Hunan Province, after reporting an active baby-selling case.
According to his posts on Weibo that morning, a woman surnamed Yuan in Huaihua had allegedly purchased a baby from its biological mother through the social media app Xiaohongshu and was preparing to resell the infant for profit.
Shangguan said he reported the case to police, successfully rescued one baby, and caught two traffickers in the act.
But just hours later, he posted another message crying for help:“At noon I helped them rescue a baby and caught two suspects. But the head of the Chengnan Police Station in Huaihua said I broke the law. They confiscated both of my phones and have assigned people to guard me. Please help me!”
That night, around 8 p.m., Shangguan resurfaced online to report that he was safe—but described an alarming ordeal.
He said the Chengnan Police Station chief snatched his phones and had him surrounded by officers for more than three hours, not even allowing him to use the restroom. Later, a section chief from the Huaihua Public Security Bureau attempted to return his phones, but a division leader surnamed Tian from the Hecheng Branch refused. His devices were finally returned close to 6 p.m.
The incident exploded on Chinese social media, triggering widespread outrage and demands for an investigation into whether Huaihua police were colluding with human traffickers.
Under mounting pressure, the Hecheng Branch issued a public statement the next day (November 2), confirming the existence of a baby-trafficking ring. The statement said four suspects had been arrested and three infants rescued, but made no mention of Shangguan’s detention. It merely added that “the circumstances involving the whistleblower’s cooperation with the investigation are under full review.”
Shangguan later responded on Weibo, condemning this claim as false:“Since I left Huaihua on the evening of November 1, no one from any government department has contacted me. There is no so-called ‘full review.’”
Online reactions were furious. Many netizens pointed out that Shangguan Zhengyi is well-known in China for his years of independent anti-trafficking work, often doing what local police refuse to do.
One commenter wrote:“He’s a hero, but to some police he’s a nuisance. He saved a child and caught two traffickers—yet somehow he’s the one accused of breaking the law. What does that say about the Chengnan Police Station?”
Another said:“Is the Chengnan Police Station the traffickers’ umbrella of protection?”
(Screenshot: Shangguan Zhengyi’s post stating that after arresting two traffickers in Huaihua, he himself was detained as a suspect.)
Many netizens urged a full investigation into the station chief and demanded public accountability to ensure Shangguan’s safety. Some expressed fear of visiting Huaihua at all, saying, “If even heroes aren’t safe there, what about ordinary people?”
Digging deeper, Chinese users discovered that two officers under the Hecheng Branch—one surnamed Yang, the other Li—were investigated in 2024 for serious misconduct in handling a prior human-trafficking case involving women.
According to official records, the Hecheng District Discipline Inspection and Supervision Commission found that both had accepted bribes, forged evidence, and obstructed investigations. They were expelled from the police force and criminally charged.
Netizens were appalled:“So this Hecheng Branch has a tradition of corruption! No wonder they tried to silence Shangguan. If this continues, Huaihua will become a ‘baby-selling paradise.’”
Once again, this incident lays bare the moral collapse of China’s public security system, where those who expose crimes are punished, while those who commit them are shielded—an emblem of the “banditry within the state” that has come to define the CCP’s rule. △
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