Why a Fugitive Who Lived as His Twin Brother for 19 Years Was Caught

Fled after committing a 2002 robbery
Assumed the identity of his brother, who died in a traffic accident
Caught after his brother's former girlfriend testified

A man who committed a crime in China and went on the run was caught after living in hiding for 19 years by assuming the identity of his deceased twin brother. Testimony from his brother's former girlfriend led police to him.

According to Hong Kong's South China Morning Post (SCMP), a robbery took place in Yuhuan, Zhejiang Province, eastern China, in 2002. Seven suspects kidnapped the victim and stole cash and valuables. Police quickly arrested six of the suspects, but the seventh, a man surnamed Chen, fled. Despite an extensive search, police could not find him, and the case eventually went cold.

The photo is unrelated to the specific content of the article. Pixabay.

In 2007, police received information from Anhui Province in central China that Chen had died in a traffic accident. His household registration was also canceled, so investigators concluded that the fugitive had died and closed the case.

The investigation resumed after a new tip came in this April. It said that a man was living under the identity of his deceased twin brother. Rong Yuyuan, the investigator assigned to the reopened case, began examining Chen's family relationships, personal information, and official records. During the investigation, police discovered that just nine days after Chen was recorded as having died in 2007, a person believed to be his brother had applied to change his name.

Police compared old identification photos of the two brothers. They looked almost identical, but subtle differences in their facial features and expressions stood out. These differences raised questions about which brother had actually survived.

Police formed a task force and went to Anhui Province. However, Chen's mother and younger sister, as well as village residents, did not cooperate with the investigation. Official records held by local household registration authorities, traffic police, and the funeral home all listed Chen as deceased. Police were unable to obtain the original accident report, making it difficult to substantiate their suspicions.

Unable to get a definitive answer from the family, police set out to find the deceased brother's former girlfriend. The woman, identified by the surname Deng, had dated him, and they had discussed marriage before he died in the accident.

Police explained the relevant laws and policies to Deng and asked her to confirm the facts. Deng eventually confirmed that the person who died in the 2007 traffic accident was not the fugitive Chen, but his twin brother. Police then reexamined the traffic accident records from that time and found additional evidence supporting suspicions that the brothers' identities had been switched.

After investigating, police confirmed that Chen was in Zhuhai, Guangdong Province, in southern China, and arrested him this June. At the time of his arrest, Chen was reportedly living under his deceased brother's identity, having settled down and started a family. After the arrest, police collected biological samples from Chen and compared them with evidence obtained in connection with the 2002 robbery. The samples matched, confirming his identity. Chen is reportedly facing a prison sentence of three to 10 years under China's Criminal Law.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.