Chinese man who faked own death turns self in after wife commits suicide

Woman killed herself, children weeks after husband was assumed dead

A Chinese man whose spouse killed herself and their children after he allegedly faked his own death to obtain an insurance payout has turned himself in to police, BBC reported.



Police said He turned himself in on October 12, a day after the bodies of his wife and children were retrieved from a pond near their house. He was assumed dead after his car was recovered from a water body but his corpse wasn't found. The 34-year-old man's wife drowned herself and their children three weeks after, leaving behind a suicide note.



In a statement, Xinhua police said He has been detained. The man bought a $145,000-insurance plan in September without informing his wife. The woman was named the beneficiary, state-run Voice of China said.  Loans to the tune of hundreds of thousands of yuan have been discovered against his name.

A video of He in tears went viral earlier. He said he had borrowed money to finance the epilepsy treatment of his three-year-old daughter.

The incident has garnered widespread attention on social media. The hashtag #ManFakesDeathLeadingToWifesDeath has been viewed by millions on micro-blogging site Weibo.



He has largely failed to elicit sympathy. Others, however, have noted its tragic underbelly.

This article originally appeared on BBC.