Father Turns In Daughter After She Embezzles RM10.3 Million To Tip Livestreamers

Follow us on Instagram, TikTok, and WhatsApp for the latest stories and breaking news.

A father in Zhengzhou, China is turning in his 19-year-old daughter in to the police in a desperate bid to recover 17 million yuan (RM10,300,000) of his life savings, which she embezzled from the family business over a period of 16 months

The daughter, Xiao Meng, allegedly used the funds to become a top-ranked tipper in various Chinese livestreaming rooms, as reported by Chinese outlet City News Service.

According to the father, known as Zhu, the family business has since declared bankruptcy and now owes millions in debt to creditors. Zhu stated that his daughter faces a minimum of 10 years in prison if convicted, a sentence that would see her reach her 30s by the time of her release.

However, he noted that the only way to recover the money is to have it legally classified as stolen funds, which would legally compel the recipients to return it

Of the 17 million yuan (RM10,300,000) embezzled, approximately 11 million yuan (RM6,600,000) was spent on tipping livestreamers, while the remaining 6 million yuan (RM3,600,000) was funnelled into card-unboxing games, a form of livestream-based trading-card gambling.

Xiao Meng, who dropped out of vocational school after one year, had been working as a cashier at her family's cold-chain food stall. Zhu, who described himself as barely literate, had trained his daughter to keep the company's books when she was 16 and eventually handed her full control of the funds.

In the livestreaming community, she became known as bang yi da jie, or 'Number One Sister', a status she achieved in multiple rooms simultaneously by tipping large sums. Despite the family business facing insolvency, Zhu reported that his daughter continued to spend her days on her phone.

Lawyer Zhou Zhaocheng of the Beijing Anjian Law Firm explained that Xiao Meng is of full criminal responsibility and that the sum involved — 17 million yuan (MYR10,300,000) — is considered "exceptionally huge" under Chinese law

While a conviction for embezzlement at this scale carries a sentence of no less than 10 years in prison, the charge could potentially be reduced to misappropriation of funds if it is determined she only intended to temporarily misappropriate the money, which carries a sentence of three to 10 years.

Zhou further noted that if the funds are classified as stolen, the streamers, multi-channel network agencies, and the platforms involved have a legal obligation to refund the money, especially if they failed to implement proper risk warnings or real-name verification.