The Yu Menglong Case: From Suspicious Fall to Torture Scandal – 17 Suspects Detained in Chinese Entertainment’s Darkest Hour

🚨 17 CELEBRITIES CUFFED: Actor Tortured for HOURS, Thrown Off Building – And the Names Will Make Your Jaw Drop 😱

Yu Menglong was a Chinese heartthrob with millions of fans. Now he’s dead — and police just arrested 17 people, including Gao Taiyu and Fan Shiqi, for what insiders call a brutal, staged murder.

Leaked videos show him being hunted in a parking lot. Screams echo in audio: “Knock him out!” A USB with dirt on powerful elites may have cost him his life.

Fans are calling it “the darkest scandal in Chinese entertainment history.” Click to see the full timeline, the suspects, and what really happened that night… 👇

Seventeen people, including several rising stars in China’s entertainment world, have been detained in connection with the September 11 death of actor Yu Menglong, 37, in what police now describe as a premeditated murder staged to look like an accident. Among the suspects: actors Gao Taiyu and Fan Shiqi, both once close to the victim and now at the center of a national firestorm.

What began as a reported “drunken fall” from a luxury high-rise in Beijing’s Chaoyang District has unraveled into a chilling narrative of betrayal, torture, and a frantic cover-up involving some of the industry’s most recognizable names.

Yu, best known for his breakout role in the 2017 fantasy drama Eternal Love, was found dead on the pavement below a 22-story residential building owned by media mogul Cheng Qingsong, one of the 17 now in custody. Initial police statements claimed alcohol and a misstep were to blame. Yu’s agency, Tianyu Media, released a brief statement expressing “unbearable sorrow” and asking for privacy.

That narrative lasted less than 48 hours.

Within days, surveillance footage began circulating on Chinese social media platforms like Weibo and Douyin. The clips — grainy but unmistakable — showed a man identified by fans as Yu Menglong sprinting across an underground parking garage, barefoot and disheveled, before being tackled by a group of individuals. One of the figures, wearing a black cap and hoodie, is alleged to be Fan Shiqi, Yu’s former Super Boy co-contestant and business partner.

In another clip, a voice shouts in Mandarin: “Spit it out! Hurry — knock him out!” Online sleuths using voiceprint analysis software claimed a 99.57% match to Fan Shiqi’s recorded interviews. Though not officially verified, the audio spread like wildfire, racking up tens of millions of views before being scrubbed from most platforms.

By late September, public pressure forced Beijing police to reopen the case. On November 8, state-run CCTV confirmed the arrests of 17 individuals on charges including intentional homicide, assault, and evidence tampering. The full list, leaked via anonymous sources and later corroborated by multiple outlets, reads like a red-carpet roll call gone wrong:

• Xin Qi – alleged mastermind and son of a senior Communist Party official
• Fang Li – film director
• Cheng Qingsong – media tycoon and building owner
• Song Yiren – actress
• Tian Hairong – socialite and heiress
• Jiao Maiqi – influencer
• Zhao Lichun – producer
• Yuan Ziwen & Yuan Zihao – twin business heirs
• Kelly Yuan – model
• Zhou Hao – entertainment executive
• Zhang Jiawei – screenwriter
• Gao Taiyu – actor
• Fan Shiqi – actor and former friend of Yu

Sources familiar with the investigation, speaking on condition of anonymity due to gag orders, paint a grim picture of the hours leading up to Yu’s death.

According to preliminary findings, Yu was invited to a “private gathering” at Cheng Qingsong’s penthouse under the pretense of discussing a new drama project. Once inside, he was reportedly plied with alcohol and drugs before being confronted about a USB drive he allegedly possessed — one said to contain financial records implicating Xin Qi in embezzlement schemes tied to Tianyu Media and several state-backed film funds.

When Yu refused to hand it over, the mood shifted. Witnesses claim he was restrained, beaten repeatedly, and subjected to prolonged physical torture. One particularly gruesome detail circulating online — though unconfirmed by authorities — alleges that several of Yu’s teeth were forcibly removed during the ordeal, explaining why he had been seen wearing a mask in public appearances in the weeks prior.

At some point between 2 a.m. and 4 a.m., Yu was dragged to the rooftop. His body showed signs of blunt force trauma inconsistent with a simple fall, including ligature marks on the wrists and defensive wounds on the forearms. The official cause of death remains “multiple trauma due to high-altitude impact,” but the coroner’s addendum notes “pre-mortem injuries suggestive of prolonged assault.”

The cover-up began almost immediately. Building security cameras were disabled. Several residents reported receiving cash payments and NDAs in exchange for silence. Three women who attempted to report suspicious activity in early September were briefly detained by local police on charges of “spreading false information” — a move widely criticized as intimidation.

Fan Shiqi and Gao Taiyu’s roles have drawn particular scrutiny. Shiqi, who co-founded a short-lived production company with Yu in 2018, had a falling out with him over unpaid debts, according to former colleagues. Gao, a frequent collaborator on Tianyu projects, allegedly stood guard in the hallway during the assault and later helped move Yu’s body to the roof.

Both men attempted to maintain public schedules in the weeks following the incident. Gao went live on Douyin on September 28, only for the chat to be flooded with accusations: “Murderer!” and “Where’s the USB?” The stream was terminated within minutes. Fan Shiqi’s concert in Shanghai on October 15 sold just 15 tickets before being canceled “due to venue issues.” Brands including Calvin Klein and L’Oréal dropped him within 24 hours of the arrest announcement.

The financial fallout has been swift and severe. Tianyu Media’s parent company, Mango Super Media, saw its stock plummet nearly 20% in the two trading days following the leaks, wiping out over $1 billion in market value. Two senior executives — Vice President Luo Zejun and General Manager Shen Yadong — resigned citing “personal reasons,” though insiders say they were pushed out amid internal audits.

Public reaction has been explosive. The hashtag #JusticeForYuMenglong trended for 72 consecutive hours on Weibo, amassing over 1.2 billion impressions before being throttled. On X (formerly Twitter), English-language posts under the same tag reached 500 million views, with users sharing side-by-side photos of Yu’s smiling red-carpet appearances next to crime scene images.

“This isn’t just about one actor,” wrote one viral X post with 1.7 million likes. “This is about an industry that chews up talent and spits out bodies when they ask too many questions.”

Protests erupted in Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou, with fans gathering outside Tianyu Media headquarters holding signs reading “How Many More Must Die?” and “No More Silence.” Riot police dispersed several gatherings, and at least 12 demonstrators were detained.

Yu’s mother, Li Xiuying, made a rare public appearance on November 10, tearfully pleading for transparency. “My son trusted these people,” she said outside a Beijing courthouse. “He called them brothers. Now they’ve taken him from me.” She has since gone silent, with reports suggesting she’s under protection after receiving death threats.

The case has also reignited conversations about the darker undercurrents of China’s entertainment machine. Yu had spoken candidly in past interviews about the toll of fame — 17 hospitalizations in two years, chronic insomnia, and pressure to participate in “drinking games” that often left him unconscious. In a 2023 podcast, he hinted at wanting to leave Tianyu: “Some contracts aren’t about art. They’re about control.”

Rumors of prior “disappearances” within the agency have resurfaced. Between 2019 and 2024, at least nine Tianyu-affiliated artists reportedly died under suspicious circumstances — drug overdoses, car accidents, suicides — all swiftly closed with minimal investigation. One former trainee claimed in a now-deleted Weibo post: “If you speak out, you vanish. Yu just took longer to break.”

The building where the incident occurred, Qihao Art Center, adds another layer of intrigue. Designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Tadao Ando, it serves as both luxury residences and a private exhibition space for elite collectors. Xin Qi, the alleged ringleader, is listed as a board member of the affiliated art foundation. Some online theories — unverified but persistent — suggest the USB contained not just financial data but compromising photos of high-level officials at exclusive events held in the building’s underground galleries.

As the investigation continues, prosecutors are preparing formal charges expected to be filed by early 2026. Legal experts predict a closed-door trial due to the sensitive political connections involved. Capital punishment remains on the table for those convicted of intentional homicide.

For now, Yu Menglong’s face stares out from billboards across China — frozen in a smile from a 2024 cola ad that brands have quietly begun pulling down. His final WeChat moment, posted hours before his death, reads simply: “Some truths are heavier than others. Be careful who you trust.”

In a nation where celebrity scandals usually fade within weeks, this one shows no signs of dying quietly.