Like many other celebrities, Taiwanese artist Annie Yi (伊能靜) occasionally pops up in the news. It’s for various reasons, of course, with some good and some bad. However, this time, Annie’s appearance in the news was somewhat incidental.
Annie had apparently attended a charity event in the US which also doubled as American billionaire Andy’s birthday party. The seemingly innocent event took a turn for the worse when netizens claimed the billionaire was actually a wanted man!
Photos of the party went viral yesterday (1st August). The footage showed a very luxurious event with plenty of celebrities enjoying themselves. Some netizens speculated on the cost of the event, claiming 7 million yuan (~RM4.6 million) was spent on it. Of course, some photos showed Annie with other celebs and the birthday host himself.
Netizens were quick to point out that the host looked a lot like the fugitive Xia Zhulin (夏竹林) who has been wanted for fraud since June 2021. According to reports, Zhulin had allegedly defrauded people of NT$1.5 billion via virtual currency. He later supposedly fled overseas, leaving his wife behind. This led to netizens criticising Annie for “supporting” him.
Annie has since released a statement regarding the issue. According to her agency, Annie had been invited to the event by her friend’s daughter. She had supposedly been told that the event was for charity and would be broadcasted. However, they stressed that Annie had not received any remuneration for it. Additionally, Annie claimed she did not know anyone at the party, save for her friend’s daughter.
Aside from the statement, Annie has not made any personal remarks. However, some netizens are having a hard time believing her. Well, only time will tell if this incident will have any bearing on Annie’s reputation.
Sources: China Press, ET Today, Yahoo! News
