The day began like any other on September 3, 2011, until a victim's phone call shattered the calm, unveiling a harrowing case of sexual slavery, murder, and confinement hidden behind a closed door in a Luoyang bunker -- one that cast a long shadow over the country.
Li Hao, then 34 years old, was an honest enforcement officer serving as a Luoyang Bureau of Quality and Technical Supervision by day but was later revealed to be a kidnapper, holding six women in his 6-meter deep bunker ranging from two to 21 months.
Li reportedly purchased the involved residential complex in 2008 under his wife's name, where he excavated tunnels and a cellar at night, deceiving his wife by claiming to have found another job and staying at the company at night.
It is revealed that Li had secretly spent two years digging the bunker in his basement without his wife's knowledge, establishing a completely isolated "underground kingdom."
According to the officer, the cellar was hidden 6 meters underground, where incomers had to pass through a 3.4-meter tunnel with a ladder and a 4.7-meter long underground passage.
The dungeon was less than 20 square meters in size and 2.43 meters high, being divided into two rooms with wooden boards, which were equipped with six iron doors, soundproofing layers, a gas stove, a computer, and books, with electricity supplied.
Reports indicated that at peak occupancy, Li imprisoned five women there, attending to their daily needs each night.
Promising a “high-paying job” to workers spanning from Karaoke bars, hair salons and massage parlors, Li reportedly lured a total of six women and tricked them into the bunker.
Li allegedly raped the victims and subjected them to psychological manipulation, in which the women not only exhibited no resistance but also envied one another, resulting in conflicts over the “attention” from Li.
During their captivity, the victims reportedly developed Stockholm syndrome, showing emotional attachment and sympathy towards Li, even assisting Li in generating profits through online pornography and aiding in the murder of escapees.
The officers stated the motive for Li’s crime was mainly to make money through pornographic web shows, where he charged about 50 yuan for about half an hour of nude chats or 100 yuan for an hour, with payments made through Alipay.
It is reported that Li personally supervised each session and shut down and unplugged the computer afterward to prevent the captives from escaping.
Notably, Li repeatedly raped the captive women and forced them into prostitution to make money.
It is reported that a fight between two women around 2010 led to one death, prompting Li and the other woman to bury the deceased on-site.
To make an example for other captives, Li reportedly forced a woman to consume feces and urine for being disobedient before killing her and burying her in a corner of the room where the girls lived in 2011.
The officer stated that some of the victims even forgot their hatred, with some pleading for Li during interrogations, describing the psychological distortion as the most chilling aspect of the case.
A call from an escaped captive on September 3, 2011, has finally shed light on Li’s crime, resulting in the rescue of three among the captives and the arrest of Li on the same day. Unfortunately, the two remaining victims were reportedly murdered by Li.
Among the rescued women, three were from Luoyang, one from Xinxiang, Henan, with ages ranging from 16 to 24 years old.
In the initial trial by the Luoyang Intermediate People's Court in the province of Henan in 2012, Li was sentenced to death for crimes that included murder, rape, organised prostitution and illegal detention.
Despite attempts to appeal, a higher court in Henan Province and the Supreme People's Court confirmed Li’s death sentence.
Under Li’s coercion and instructions, three women who were found guilty of the murders but were given lenient sentences– one was sentenced to three years in prison for intentional homicide and two were put on probation.
Following approval by the Supreme People's Court, Li was executed in accordance with law in Luoyang, Henan Province on January 21, 2014.
