The mysterious disappearance of a woman in the city of Hangzhou has Chinese netizens playing detective and criticizing for police for having not yet cracked the case.
The 53-year-old woman, surnamed Lai, has been missing now for 14 days. Her husband claims that she disappeared in the early morning hours of July 5 during a rainstorm. He says that he was sleeping beside her only to wake up and discover that she had vanished.
Strangely, Lai had evidently only left with her pajamas and tennis shoes, leaving her phone, ID, and even umbrella behind.
Equally strangely, the many surveillance cameras installed in the residential community capture no sign of her leaving.
So far, the police investigation has yet to turn up any clue on the woman’s whereabouts. None of her friends or family members say they have been in contact with her.
Lai worked as a cleaner at a local accounting firm. She’s been married twice and has two children, one with each husband. She exhibited no known signs of mental distress or financial worries.
The case has become one of the top trending topics on Chinese social media with many netizens coming down hard on police for the lack of evidence they’ve managed to dig up. Most are certain that Lai’s disappearance was a family matter and fingers have quickly pointed toward the husband.
A reward offer of 100,000 yuan ($14,300) has been made by the family for information leading to her whereabouts.
