Businessman from China allegedly kidnapped & murdered in Cambodia after suspect demands S$2.5 million ransom

The body of a real estate developer from China was found in a car in a landfill in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on May 30.

The local police identified him as Yang Weixin, a 53-year-old Chinese national who had been living in Phnom Penh, The Cambodia China Times reported.

A passerby discovered his body in a car that was unlocked and soaked in blood, prompting the passerby to call the police.

Following investigations, the police believed that Yang was kidnapped and tortured before being brutally murdered. They found bloodstained knives and tissues, and cable ties in the car.

His wife claimed she had received messages demanding a ransom of US$2 million (S$2.5 million) hours before he was found dead.

According to Cambodia's Koh Santepheap Daily, the ransom was to be delivered in cryptocurrency.

Owed people debts

The police learned from Yang's wife that he had been in a debt dispute with a fellow Chinese national since 2014 over a failed business venture.

Their dispute had persisted for many years, and as recently as 2025, the man visited their house to demand that Yang pay back the debt.

Police are currently investigating whether the case is related to the business dispute.

The kidnapping

Yang's wife said that he had gone missing since the evening of May 29.

The CCTV footage around their house showed that around 8:16pm that evening, Yang was grabbed and forcefully put in a car by three unidentified men in the car park.

At around 3am, his wife received the first ransom message, sent from Yang's phone. The sender continued to pressure her, until 8:47am the next morning, when she received a message saying, "It has come to an end".

After that, she lost contact with the sender.

Later at around 11:30am, she got a call from the police informing her that her husband was dead.

The autopsy on Yang's body revealed that he had suffered many serious injuries, including a laceration on the head due to a severe blow, bruises on his face and neck, bloodshot eyes, and marks of being tied up and beaten around his body.

The forensic authorities believed that he was beaten and abused, then ultimately suffocated to death.

The case has been classified as a premeditated murder.