By Li Hongmei
Chinese actor Li Yapeng faces further scrutiny after prominent whistleblower Zhou Xiaoyun published new evidences, claiming he siphoned off another 55 million yuan (US$9.07 million) from donations made to Smile Angel, a charity set up by Li and his former wife Faye Wong.
Zhou first targeted Li in December 2013. He alleged that nearly 70 million yuan were misused and accused Li of turning a non-profit hospital, funded by the Chinese Red Cross, into his own property.
Li and pop diva Faye Wong launched the foundation in 2006 to help children with cleft lips and palates after their daughter was diagnosed with it. Wong's friends, all A-list stars and social celebrities, had backed the foundation.
Records show celebrities, including veteran Hong Kong actress Carina Lau and Wong's former agent Katie Chan raised nearly 5 million yuan, mostly through charity auctions held by Smile Angel.
But their donations were never credited into the account, which were published on the website of the Chinese Red Cross Foundation. Zhou accused Li of "stealing money from Wong's friends."
Local media had also reported that Shanghai star couple Deng Chao and Sun Li had made donation for a children's ward of a newly opened hospital. But records show that Deng had donated only 1 yuan so far.
In December 2009, Chinese Red Cross had reported that Yi Bin, a top executive of Beijing Scrianen Pharmaceutical Co Ltd, had donated medicines worth 50 million yuan. It was not listed in its financial accounts.
Zhou alleged that Li had planned to defraud Wong's star friends. Media reports and video footage showed Li and Wong donating 1 million yuan to set up the Smile Angel on November 21, 2001. But Li actually made his first donation - 400,000 yuan - about a month later.
"Li never paid a single penny to set up the foundation. It was a lie," Zhou said.
Zhou compared Li to Huang Silang, a character in Jiang Wen's black humor film "Gone With the Bullets." Huang, the richest man in the town, says, "Let squires donate first and people will follow. Afterwards, we will return the money to squires and we fill our pockets with the rest."
Zhou said he had asked Chaoyang District Civil Affairs Bureau in Beijing to publicize financial statement of Smile Angel, but his request was rejected on grounds that it invaded into "Li's privacy."
In January, Li wrote on his microblog, saying, "Your allegations have severely hurt me and my foundation. If you really care about my foundation, I invite you and other agencies to pay a visit. If you just mean to create an online sensation, we will guard our rights by law."
