China: horror of 4,000 corpses stolen for dental implants

A macabre scandal is rocking China: a company is accused of stealing more than 4,000 corpses from crematoria and medical laboratories to use the bones in dental implants. The news, which was shared on social media by a well-known criminal defense lawyer, has shocked the country to its core. The SCMP newspaper then proceeded to spread the news internationally.

The investigation

Police in Taiyuan, in the northern province of Shanxi, are investigating allegations that bones were used to produce allogeneic bone grafts, normally made from bones taken during surgeries. Prosecutors confirmed an investigation into a criminal organization dedicated to “stealing and reselling corpses for profit.”

The evidence

Lawyer Yi Shenghua, president of Beijing Brave Lawyers, said he received “authentic” evidence from an inside source. According to documents published by Yi, the Shanxi Aorui Biomaterials company allegedly illegally purchased cadavers and limbs from Sichuan, Guangxi and Shandong provinces and used them to produce bone grafts. The company allegedly earned 380 million yuan (about $53 million) during this period, mainly from the sale of bones for dental implants.

The involvement of crematoria and hospitals

The investigation led to the seizure of more than 18 tons of bones and more than 34,000 semi-finished and finished products. One suspect, the general manager of the company, reportedly confessed to stealing more than 4,000 human bodies from crematoria in several provinces. Crematorium personnel are suspected of dismembering the bodies to sell the bones to the company. The investigation is also looking into allegations that the liver center of Qingdao University Hospital in Qingdao, Shandong, illegally sold corpses to the criminal organization.

Public outrage

The case sparked a wave of public outrage in China. The brutality and disregard for the dead displayed by the offenders stunned a lot of online users. The incident also raises questions about the regulation of the bone grafting industry and the need for stricter controls to prevent such abuses.

The scandal of stolen corpses in China is a disturbing case that highlights the unscrupulousness of some individuals willing to do anything for profit. There is still great respect for the dead and burials in China, despite attempts to erase ancestor worship during the Cultural Revolution Chinese authorities are thoroughly investigating the affair, but it remains to be seen whether they will be able to bring all those responsible to justice and prevent future abuses in the bone graft industry.