American woman is believed to be murdered in Beijing

“She is an American citizen and there is an ongoing investigation,” said a spokeswoman at the U.S. embassy in Beijing, who declined to elaborate.

Hong Kong newspaper the South China Morning Post identified the victim as Tina Tai and said she died of multiple stab wounds Tuesday inside her home in Le Leman Lake villa — a residential compound favored by wealthy expatriates.

The killer stole at least 20,000 yuan (US$2,470) from the apartment, the report said.

Residents living in the compound said police tried to cover up the killing by saying she died of a heart attack, according to the report, amid speculation a domestic worker was involved in the murder. The report did not say why the police might have wanted to cover up the murder.

Tai was the wife of an engineer with a U.S. energy firm, and the couple have one son, the report said.

A staff member at the Leman Lake villa surnamed Niu confirmed her death but declined to give any details.

“Yes, she is dead. Police and experts are investigating,” Niu told AFP, refusing to comment further.

Beijing police did not respond to AFP’s request for details on Friday.

Although crime has increased at a rapid pace in China with its two decades of economic opening, the killing of foreigners is relatively uncommon.

Subscribe to The China Post and save 25%. Click here

SharePrintEmail

Write a Comment

Enter your comments - 3000 characters max

Type in image code

Submit

 Receive China Post promos Respond to this email