On Monday evening, police in Jinjiang district in the southwestern city of Chengdu issued a notice on social media stating that a person surnamed Liu, 50, and a person surnamed Wu, 34, had been “subjected to criminal coercive measures in accordance with the law” on suspicion of lodging “false accusations” and conducting “illegal business operations”.

Liu is an investigative reporter who previously worked for the Guangzhou-based newspaper New Express. In recent years, he has operated a WeChat public account as an independent journalist, where he has covered disputes between private enterprises and local government bodies.

The piece also alleged Pu was involved in the forced demolition of two properties owned by local literature professor Tuo Jiguang, who took his own life in 2021 following a years-long dispute over the homes.