Embassy officials visit US student detained in China

[Randy W]

in the SCMP (and many other sources)

 

Embassy officials visit US student detained in China over row with taxi driver

Mother of Guthrie McLean, 25, who has yet to be allowed to visit her son, says he is ‘enduring’ in captivity

 

 

According to Tom Mitchell, a long-time family friend and Beijing bureau chief for the Financial Times, the driver refused to give Mrs McLean, who is deaf and teaches sign language in China, 30 yuan in change after driving her to her home in Zhengzhou. In the ensuing argument, the driver threw a 10 yuan note at the woman and things “escalated from there”.

The driver then tried to snatch Mrs McLean’s bags and was “pushing her around” when her son came out from the house to see what was going on. He pulled the driver off his mother and pushed him to the ground, Mitchell said.

 

The driver claimed he hurt his knee in the altercation, for which police demanded 100,000 yuan (US$14,800) in compensation from McLean. They later lowered the sum to 50,000 yuan.

“Guthrie was only defending his mother,” Mitchell said on Friday. “He’s a very gentle, quiet kid. He’s not the type of kid who goes around picking fights with anyone.”

Mrs McLean told the Post on Thursday that she does not know when she will be able to visit her son.

“[The situation] is very frustrating,” she said. “They have not said if, or when, he will be released.”

 

 

 

 

[amberjack1234]

That's typical China SOP. Especially with cab drivers and especially now that China is next to the biggest gorilla in the room. 20 years ago you could not get a Chinese person to do a thing like that to a foreigner if they did he would be cooling his heels in the hoosegow. I use to want to go back to China so bad and the wife would not go. Now, I don't care to go back at all. As a matter of fact I am doing everything that I can not to go back.