This is the abridged version. My wife’s female cousin is about 25 now. Grew up on the Chinese side of the Burmese border. Father is a Shanghaiese sent to the countryside for the cultural revolution, mother is a local Han Chinese in that really remote spot.
Cousin has been in Shanghai for about 10 years now. Lived with her first boyfriend who was reasonably wealthy for a few years and “divorced” maybe a year ago. Cousin works for Sister in Law, who has a pretty lucrative business. Cousin runs all the daily detail stuff.
Well, as I’m getting backfilled on the story. Maybe a year ago Cousin met some guy on the internet from probably a 1,000 miles away. Not sure what the status is and how much time they have spent together in real life. the guy has come to shanghai but never been introduced to anyone. In fact, seems like about a month ago, cousin and guy walked into a restaurant where sister in law was eatiing, and the guy bolted as soon as sister in law shouted out hello.
right before Chinese New Year, Sister in law’s business had a bounced check for about USD30,000. Cousin explained it away and everyone was going to verify it after Chinese New Year. During Chinese New Year, cousin went on a trip (lying about the destination) and went to see this guy in Hubei Province. It was kinda like saying I’m going to LA and then actually going to Denver. I saw cousin at dinner after her trip at the tail end of the Chinese New Year. She seemed pretty happy and brought us a present of organic eggs and farmstuff from Hubei Province.
About 10 days ago, she did a runner. Left a note saying she was borrowing the money and would pay it back. Another USD10,000 worth of Chinese currency went missing to.
Around that time a car bearing Hubei Province license plates was recorded at the apartment block where cousin lived. She used to live in a service apartment and parking is restricted thus wrote down the plate numbers. Plate numbers were fake. This in and of itself isn’t too worrisome as China does have a problem with piracy and people paying taxes. Sis in law went in the apartment and found some letters or something with the guy’s name. Friends in the police ran the name, and it didn’t turn up. This means the guy had a fake name.
Cousin did a big fraud (at least 10 years salary of the average joe getting by in the provinces). The “boyfriend” has a car with fake plates, is using a fake name. Boyfriend and cousin together conspired to never meet anyone from the extended family here in Shanghai (cousin’s parents, a multitude of cousins, friends, etc). Cousin hasn’t been in contact since the runner.
Cousin’s mom lives with us and helps look after the twins.
We’re actually starting to get pretty worried. If the police look for her, they have to arrest her for something. We’re probably going to hire someone to try track her down in the city we think she’s at. Then figure out the next move. She’s changed phones, no reply on the email addresses we know, no longer on her IM.
Hoping it’s just dumb 25 year old “love made me crazy” and not a whacked out internet psycho.