Son of Dalian Wanda billionaire accused of punching man for taking photos of him

January 12, 2023

Wang Sicong, son of billionaire and Dalian Wanda Group founder Wang Jianlin, was arrested on Wednesday after allegedly assaulting a man in Shanghai.

Shanghai Jing’an Police were alerted of an assault on West Nanjing Road at 4 p.m. on Wednesday. According to a report released on Weibo, Wang and three other men punched the victim, Chen, in the face after accusing him of taking pictures of them, resulting in a broken nose.

Wang was fined 500 yuan (approximately $74) by the police. His seven-day administrative arrest was pardoned after he filed an application for reconsideration.

It was later confirmed that the Wang named in the report was Wang Sicong, according to Chinese newspaper Beijing News.

Wang, 35, became known as “China’s richest son” when his father, Wang Jianlin, became the richest man in China in 2015 with his then-estimated fortune of $38 billion. However, on Forbes China’s 100 Richest of 2022, Wang Jianlin had plunged to 39th with an estimated $7.1 billion.

This is not the first time the only son of the Dalian Wanda Group founder has landed himself in public controversies.

Chinese internet celebrity Wu Di accused Wang of beating a Beijing woman in South Korea in 2016.

In 2019, the Beijing court revealed Wang’s debt of 150 million yuan (approximately $21.5 million at the time) on the Chinese Supreme Court’s official website.

Last April, Wang took to Weibo to publicly question the effectiveness of China’s state-sanctioned medicine for treating COVID-19, resulting in the removal of his account with 40 million followers.

Chinese netizens formerly characterized Wang as “the people’s husband” and “China’s most eligible bachelor” for his lavish displays of wealth and outspoken persona.

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