Tycoon who disappeared from Hong Kong hotel in 2017 stands trial in China

theguardian.com:

Xiao Jianhua, a Canadian-Chinese tycoon who disappeared from a hotel in Hong Kong in 2017, is standing trial on Monday, Ottawa’s embassy in Beijing said in a statement.

“Global Affairs Canada is aware that a trial in the case of Canadian citizen, Mr Xiao Jianhua, will take place on July 4 2022,” the embassy told AFP, without specifying the location of the trial or charges against him. “Canadian consular officials are monitoring this case closely, providing consular services to his family and continue to press for consular access.”

Xiao, a Canadian citizen, disappeared from Hong Kong’s Four Seasons hotel in January 2017, causing shock and disbelief in the city. Local media reported that he was snatched by mainland Chinese agents.

One of China’s richest people at the time of his alleged abduction, Xiao reportedly had close connections to the upper echelons of the ruling Communist party.

Hong Kong police said at the time that he had crossed the border into mainland China. His company Tomorrow Group also later said he was on the mainland.

Chinese authorities have been silent about the case, which has been reportedly linked to an anti-corruption drive championed by the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, since he came into power.

Xiao’s alleged abduction came at a time when mainland Chinese agents were not permitted to operate in Hong Kong, and it sparked fear in the city about residents being forcibly disappeared.

These fears were at the heart of massive pro-democracy protests that shook Hong Kong in 2019, prompted by a government bill that would have allowed extraditions to mainland China’s opaque, Communist party-controlled judicial system.

Xiao’s disappearance also followed the alleged kidnapping into mainland custody of five people