China ‘most devoted fraudster’ fakes records to give wife free dialysis; reignites medical debate

China’s “most devoted fraudster” has returned to public attention after mainland media revisited his case of forging hospital payment slips to keep his wife alive.Liao Dan, a former factory worker in Beijing with only a secondary school education, had been living on the margins of the city with his wife, Du Jinling, and their son after their workplaces shut down.Their hardship worsened in 2007, when Du was diagnosed with severe uraemia and told she needed dialysis three times a week to survive.The treatment cost more than 5,000 yuan (US$730) a month, according to Beijing-news" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="131975" data-entity-type="organization">The Beijing News.Loyal husband, Liao Dan, above, struggles to hold back his tears beside a group of reporters. Photo: BaiduWithin weeks, Liao had spent the family’s savings and was forced to take his wife home from the hospital.He tried to seek medical insurance reimbursement, but Du was ineligible because she did not have a Beijing household registration.Liao, who had diabetes himself and once suffered severe ulcers on both feet, was trapped between poverty, illness and a system he could not navigate.While paying hospital fees one day, he noticed a loophole. Staff appeared to check only whether a receipt carried an official seal, without closely verifying the amount paid.Liao, left, sitting in court in front of the presiding judge who showed leniency towards him. Photo: BaiduDesperate, Liao turned the loophole into a crime. After contacting a fake-seal maker, he forged the hospital stamp and began submitting doctored receipts instead of paying the full fees.The deception lasted four years, allowing Du’s dialysis to continue uninterrupted.The scheme unravelled in September 2011, when the hospital upgraded its billing system and discovered missing payment records. Investigators later found 49 forged receipts involving more than 172,000 yuan (US$25,000).Liao wipes away his tears. He says he is unable to define the meaning of love, but knew he could not leave his wife’s side. Photo: BaiduIn court, Liao pleaded guilty. Reports said he covered his face and wept as he told the judge: “I had been pushed to the point where there was no other way. I only wanted my wife to live.”Further ReadingThe case stirred nationwide sympathy, many described it as a tragic love story and dubbed Liao China’s “most devoted fraudster”.An official from Zhuhai in southern China and other well-wishers donated more than 500,000 yuan (US$73,000), allowing Liao to repay the hospital, with the rest used for Du’s treatment.In December 2012, Liao was convicted of fraud and given a three-year jail sentence, suspended for four years, plus a 3,000-yuan (US$440) fine.The ruling allowed him to remain at home and care for his wife while undergoing community correction.Liao told the media that he was uneducated and did not know how to define love.“I only felt that a person must have a conscience. She was ill. I could not just leave her to die.”However, Du died of multiple organ failure in May 2016.Liao told the media that her death came so suddenly she left no final words, leaving him feeling “empty inside.”Liao, right, cares for his wife, who died of multiple organ failure in May 2016. Photo: Baidu“No matter how difficult life became, we never once thought of divorce. Every yuan I had went towards keeping her alive,” he added.The story has recently resurfaced online, with related videos drawing millions of views and over 400,000 likes.One online user asked: “If medical insurance had been more accessible to migrant residents at the time, would Liao have been forced down an illegal path?”“Liao’s case helped push the medical insurance system to improve. Today, dialysis for uraemia patients can be reimbursed by up to 90 per cent,” said another.Some reports from mainland sources indicated that Liao died of illness in 2020; however, this information has not yet been verified by authoritative sources.