Huang Zhibo gets prison sentence for face mask scam

19 Mar – Former idol trainee Huang Zhibo has been sentenced for three years and three months in prison for defrauding a customer out of her money in a face mask scam.

As reported on Sina, the aspiring singer received the verdict at his trial on 17 March, after pleading guilty and apologising in court, saying that he understood his wrongdoing and did not want it to further shame his family, especially his father.

Although his lawyer requested for a lighter punishment (i.e. probation) as Huang pleaded guilty himself, the court decided not to do so due to the fact that the singer committed the crime during a tough period where everybody was focused on preventing and controlling the outbreak of COVID-19.

Aside from the prison sentence, Huang has also been fined RMB 10,000. However, the aspiring singer did return the money he previously scammed to the victim with the help of his family.

Back in February, Huang was revealed to have been arrested in Shanghai on suspicion of fraud, after a woman reported to have been conned out of thousands of yuans by the singer who promised to deliver a huge number of face masks to her.

Following the case, Huang's management company, Yuehua Entertainment decided to terminate their contract.

Huang's sister later apologised on his behalf, saying that the singer did so in desperation due to their father's illness and the hardship of being a trainee.

(Photo Source: Haoduoliao)