Chinese superstar Fan Bingbing is said to have been freed from her reported “government detention” and has since returned to Beijing.
In June, a fellow celebrity accused Fan of tax fraud, publishing copies of two contracts allegedly proving her guilt on social media.
Fan suddenly disappeared from public view and vanished from social media, sparking rumors that lasted for months.
Citing unnamed sources privy to her case, South China Morning Post reported that Fan was held for an unspecified period of “residential detention” at a “holiday resort” near Wuxi, in Jiangsu province. The report further noted that the area has been previously used to interrogate arrested Communist Party officials.
According to Chinese tax authorities, Fan and her companies will be paying $129 million (883 million yuan) in back taxes, fines, and other penalties. Should Fan pay sooner than later, she will reportedly be able to avoid criminal prosecution.
Fan, who has been listed as the highest-paid celebrity in the Forbes China Celebrity 100 list for four years in a row since 2013, took to Weibo on Wednesday to offer an apology to the government and people of China.
“I feel ashamed and guilty for what I did, and here, I offer my sincere apology to everyone,” she wrote.
“I feel ashamed that I committed tax evasion in [upcoming film] ‘Unbreakable Spirit’ and other projects by taking advantage of ‘split contracts.’ Throughout these days of my cooperation with the taxation authorities’ investigation of my accounts as well as my company’s, I have realized that, as a public figure, I should’ve observed the law, setting a good example for society and the industry,” she added.
“I feel ashamed that I committed tax evasion in [upcoming film] ‘Unbreakable Spirit’ and other projects by taking advantage of ‘split contracts.’ Throughout these days of my cooperation with the taxation authorities’ investigation of my accounts as well as my company’s, I have realized that, as a public figure, I should’ve observed the law, setting a good example for society and the industry,” she added.
Featured image via Instagram/bingbing_fan
