A bizarre death in prison that occurred nine years ago has recently seen a glimmer of hope for justice. According to China's "New Yellow River" report, an inmate named Xie Mouzhong in Anhui was found dead in prison years ago. His son accused that the body had "a hole on the top of the head," but the authorities initially classified the death as "normal." After nine years of persistent petitioning by the family, the authorities finally overturned the original verdict, reclassifying the case as an "abnormal death," and a prison guard suspected of abuse will face a retrial, marking a significant breakthrough in this mysterious case.
This tortuous case began in January 2017, when Xie Mouzhong, who was serving his sentence in Fuyang Prison in Anhui, suddenly died. His son, Mr. Xie, recalled that his father was in good health a month before his death, but his body showed multiple wounds, and, most shocking, a hole was discovered on the top of his head, making him firmly believe his father was murdered.
However, the road to finding the truth was extremely difficult. The procuratorate’s initial investigation concluded Xie Mouzhong’s death was "normal." Mr. Xie refused to accept this and embarked on a nine-year-long journey to appeal. Not until 2023 did the case take a turn, as the prosecution, after review, confirmed that an instructor in the prison district, Xu Mouhua, had bound Xie Mouzhong and prosecuted him for "abuse of a person under supervision," eventually sentencing Xu to eight months in prison.
Nonetheless, Xie Mouzhong’s fundamental cause of death was still not corrected. Mr. Xie persisted in his investigation and, ultimately, in November 2025, succeeded in pushing the procuratorate to officially overturn the previous conclusion, with the case being reclassified as an "abnormal death."
Deletion of "Sudden Death" Assessment and Case Retrial
With the change in the nature of the case, the public prosecution agency officially amended the indictment in March, crucially removing the previous assessment that "sudden death was caused by the exacerbation of underlying disease."
Mr. Xie stated that, due to new evidence and the change in the indictment, the previously convicted prison guard Xu Mouhua, who had already filed an appeal, had the case sent back by the intermediate court to the original court for retrial, with a new hearing expected soon. He hopes that this trial will thoroughly uncover the truth, hold the abuser fully accountable, bring justice to his deceased father, and vowed to also pursue accountability for the previous hasty assessment and handling of the case.