As rumors spread online that Kris (legal name Wu Yifan; Canadian national), a singer formerly of the group EXO, had died while serving a prison sentence in China, Chinese public security moved to quell the speculation, calling it "fake news."
On the 13th, according to local outlets including Asia Television News (ATV) and Shenchu News, a post recently appeared on China's Weibo by an internet user who claimed to have been "in the same prison as Kris." The person said, "A few days ago, a guard secretly chatted and said Kris had died," and claimed, "He was gang-raped by a local organized crime group and was killed after refusing the boss's demands."
The post included an image described as "Kris's recent appearance while incarcerated," showing a man in a blue prison uniform being interrogated, with the face pixelated. The photo quickly climbed into the top ranks of Weibo's real-time search terms after it was uploaded and spread rapidly.
Some internet users fueled the controversy by raising another rumor that "he died after his health deteriorated during a hunger strike."
As the false information spread, the Jiangsu Public Security Department directly issued a position via its official Weibo and dismissed the rumors. Public security said, "The circulated photo was edited from part of an old news video, with the original person's face composited with Kris's face," adding that it was "a thoroughly fabricated fake photo."
They also warned that "sharing or spreading unverified information may result in legal punishment," and asked people to refrain from "secondary distribution" online.
In December 2020, he was indicted on charges of committing crimes against three women using the same method, including raping a woman intoxicated at his home. In 2018, he was also found to have engaged in obscene acts with two women along with an acquaintance.
Detained in 2021, he went to trial and was sentenced in 2023 to 13 years in prison and is currently serving his sentence in a prison in China.