It is alleged that the murdered businessman Neil Heywood threatened Bo Guagua, the son of the disgraced Chinese politician Bo Xilai.
The details have come to light during the court trial of Guagua’s mother over Heywood’s murder. An article in the Telegraph claims that three days before he was poisoned, Mr Heywood sent Guagua a “threatening” e-mail.
Heywood allegedly expressed disappointment at a failed property deal, before going on to demand that Guagua pay him £10m, which amounted to 10% of the expected returns. The court reputedly heard that Heywood told Guagua that he would “be destroyed” if he failed to pay up.
Guaga is studying at Harvard, though he is reportedly in hiding at the moment because he fears for his safety.
When at Oxford, he was known for his playboy lifestyle. He attended lavish parties and neglected his work, earning the open disapproval of his tutors at Balliol. When rusticated because of his lack of work, he spent a year staying at the Randolph.
When contacted by Reuter’s, Guaga told a reporter ‘I cannot comment on any of the details [of the email], but I can disclose that there is no such thing as either possessing or transferring 130 million pounds.’
Bo Guaga’s father is also on trial for charges of corruption, which in China can carry the death penalty.
