Official sources in China reported that hundreds of young and middle-aged police officers die from illness each year. Many of these incidents were sudden deaths, which struck family members and colleagues with surprise.
The sudden deaths reported for police officers in the past three months were particularly alarming. Among all these cases, at least 20 people were under the age of 60, and the youngest was 23 years old.
The Golden Shield Monument, a Weibo account affiliated with China’s public security department, reported deaths within the system each year starting from 2020.
Among all police deaths from June to August of this year, 20 were under the age of 60, and 10 of those were under the age of 50. The two youngest men were 23 and 34, respectively.
Wang Ruicong, a first-class constable at a police station in Yongzhou city, Hunan Province, died of a sudden illness on Aug. 1, 2023, at the age of 23.
Wu Yang, a first-level police chief who headed a police station in Taiyuan city, Shanxi Province, suffered a sudden illness during work on the morning of July 27, and died at the age of 34 after exhaustive efforts to resuscitate him.
Besides Mr. Wu, 14 other police officers suddenly fell ill while on duty and passed away after unsuccessful medical treatment.
The reports on Golden Shield Monument named the specific illness for only four people.
Wei Heyou, a first-level police chief who headed a police station in Nanchang, Jiangxi Province, was hit with a sudden cerebral hemorrhage while in an office on July 24, 2023. After all-out rescue efforts failed, he died on July 25 at the age of 51.
Yang Cheng, a first-level police chief in Lanzhou, Gansu Province, was hit by a sudden acute myocardial infarction while on duty patrolling. Only 49 years old, he passed away after emergency medical rescue failed.
Tai Guangkun, a first-level police inspector and the fourth-level senior police chief in Qujing city, Yunnan Province, died on June 17 at the age of 52 due to pancreatic space-occupying lesions.
Hundreds Died During the Three-Year Pandemic
In February 2023, the website published a statistical report based on official data collected between 2020 and 2022.In 2020, 350 police officers under 50 passed away. Twenty-eight people were under 30, 72 people were between 30 and 39 years old, and 115 were aged 40–49. Sudden cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases were the number one killer for those who died from illness.
In 2021, 261 policemen were reported dead. Twenty-seven were under the age of 30, 47 were aged 30-39, and 89 were aged 40–49.
The report revealed that 340 policemen and 6 policewomen died in 2022, of which 70 percent were civil policemen and 11 percent were prison police.
Of these 346 people, 17 were under the age of 30, 64 were aged 30–39, and 120 aged 40–49. That means 201 people, or 58 percent, were below 50.
The Golden Shield Monument did not have death toll data before 2020, nor did it specify that some of the deaths were due to COVID-19 infection.
However, “The Gentleman of the Police World,” another social media account affiliated with the CCP’s public security system, revealed in a February 2020 post that “throughout the fight against the epidemic, 17 police officers have died, the youngest being only 26 years old.” That was only the second month into the COVID outbreak in China.
It is well-known that police in China are not considered friends of the public. Instead of providing service and safeguarding neighborhoods, they are viewed as minions to the Chinese communist officials, and often bully civilians at will.
During the three-year pandemic control, Chinese police silenced whistleblowers, harassed dissidents, and ruthlessly enforced the draconian zero-COVID lockdown, totally unresponsive to the desperate cries of the needy.
