In February 2026, I left a company in Bangkok, Thailand, and flew back home. The first few months were calm—no passport issues or police visits. After a couple of weeks at home, I found a regular job, hoping to earn an honest living. But on July 26th, three police officers from Zhengzhou, Henan, along with two local cops, showed up at my workplace in Guiyang and arrested me on the spot.
Once they cuffed me, they told me I was suspected of running a gambling operation overseas. They drove me overnight on the highway back to the Zhengzhou police station. In the interrogation room, they showed me a photo with my employee ID, code name, and salary from my time in Bangkok. It was clear to me—I’d been sold out by someone from the company. I’d worked there for a year, and by rights, I should have been able to leave with my pay and passport in seven days, but they delayed it by two weeks. That extra time was likely when they handed my details to the police.
During questioning, I laid out everything I knew about the company staff, hoping to make things easier for myself. I hired a lawyer who told me I was among the first from my department to be caught, and advised me to cooperate fully. I was just a low-level employee, but they charged me with operating a casino, which could mean up to ten years in prison and fines. The police used this to scare me during interrogation. After cooperating and with my lawyer’s help, I spent 30 days in detention and paid a 10,000 yuan bail to be released on probation. The lawyer said the police were still after my former colleagues, and I’d have to wait for the trial.
