Zhao Liping, a powerful official in the Chinese province of Inner Mongolia, was recently arrested for killing his mistress in the mountains.
A policeman by training and former deputy chairman of a provincial Communist Party organization, Zhao had taken his lover into the wilderness, where he shot her and buried her body after burning it, according to state-run media on March 20. Zhao motivation for the murder is still being investigated.
Recent years have seen multiple cases of Chinese Communist officials murdering their lovers as a result of unresolved quarrels. For many Chinese, including those who expressed their views online, the spate of brutal killings reflects a lack of scruples and moral restraint in the nation’s political elite.
Zhao’s case is only the latest. From planned assassination carried out with explosives to dismembering and boiling to conceal a killing committed in the heat of the moment, the ways for a kept woman to die are varied and gruesome.
Killed for Money
Chinese officials frequently keep mistresses for gratification and status, but may tire of their existence should the woman become a burden to the official’s career or wallet. Common flashpoints include demands for marriage or financial support during pregnancy. Sometimes the murders are committed to avoid blackmail.
