Detained Rolls-Royce driver accused of more crimes

Beijing police announced on Tuesday that they are investigating a woman for criminal suspicion after she was detained for blocking emergency vehicles' access to a hospital with a Rolls-Royce.

The woman, surnamed Shan, was accused of other crimes during her five-day administrative detention, the police bureau in Chaoyang district said.

The police said that she will remain in detention as police launched a fresh investigation and did not say what the alleged crimes were.

She was detained last Thursday for allegedly blocking the hospital's emergency pathway, refusing to cooperate with the police and disturbing public order.

According to an earlier police statement, Shan, 31, drove the Rolls-Royce, whose registered owner is a person surnamed He, to the emergency pathway of Beijing Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital on Aug 14 and left after parking the car on the access road.

Traffic police soon arrived and asked Shan to move the car, but she refused to cooperate and argued with the police and hospital staff, the statement said.

In a video that was widely circulated online that day, Shan shouted "I don't have an obligation to cooperate... I'm telling you, I'm not moving the car now. I don't have a driver's license" to the traffic police. Shan eventually moved the car after a warning and was fined for illegal parking.

"Shan disregarded hospital security's request to move the car, blocked the emergency access and did not cooperate with law enforcement. Her actions seriously disturbed the public order," the police said.

"After investigation and confirming with the hospital that the woman is not pregnant, Shan is hereby detained for five days according to law," they added.

After the video went viral, many netizens raised doubts about the legitimacy of the white Rolls-Royce car and its license plate, saying that Shan's behavior is related to her family background.

Shan told The Beijing News in a video that her family is self-employed and the Rolls-Royce belongs to a friend. She said she has caused a lot of trouble for the car owner and did not want to reveal more information about that person.

According to the police investigation, the license plate was initially registered in 1995 under a minivan. The plate was transferred to a person surnamed He in 2006. The Rolls-Royce involved was purchased by Shan in 2018 which was then transferred to He under He's plate.

Facing wide criticism after the circulation of the video, Shan later apologized in another video filmed by The Beijing News and begged for forgiveness. She said she was late for her appointment at the hospital and was in a rush. "I was afraid that nobody would treat me if I arrived late," she said, adding that she felt sorry for causing so much trouble.

Shan did not respond to queries about relevant information on the license plate of the vehicle involved, The Beijing News reported.