Shanghai –
The Chinese gaming billionaire Lin Qi is dead. The successful entrepreneur died on Friday (December 25th) in Shanghai – at the age of only 39.
The circumstances surrounding his death are mysterious. According to his company, Yoozoo Games Co., a few days earlier, on December 17th, Qi was hospitalized after feeling unwell.
After feeling unwell: Yoozoo founder Lin Qi dies in hospital
At first, the 39-year-old seemed stable, but then his condition rapidly deteriorated. The medics finally couldn’t save him, and Qi died in the hospital.
Since then, there has been much speculation about the cause of death of one of the most successful entrepreneurs in China. But there seems to be evidence that Lin Qi did not die of natural causes.
As reported by the AP news agency, among others, Qi has already shown symptoms of poisoning without going into any further detail. According to the current state of the investigation, the police also assume that he may have died of poisoning.
Games billionaire poisoned? Suspect arrested
In the meantime, a suspect has even been arrested, the news agency added. It is said to be an employee of the company Yoozoo, which Qi founded.
According to local media, the employee allegedly killed Qi with a poisoned tea. The police have not yet confirmed this, but possibly also for tactical reasons.
There is currently no information about the motive for the murder.
Yoozoo Games is best known for “Game of Thrones: Winter is Coming”
Yoozoo Games is known to us under the name Youzu Interactive. Lin Qi founded the company in 2009 and was extremely successful with it. Qi is said to have generated an estimated net worth of 6.8 billion yuan, the equivalent of around one billion US dollars.
Most people are familiar with the game developer for the strategy game “Game of Thrones: Winter is Coming”. The online role-playing game “League of Angels” was also played all over the world.
The company’s titles are typically free online games that are financed through optional in-app purchases.
Lin Qi’s company only gained worldwide attention in the past few months, when its work on a series production of the science fiction novel series “The Three Suns” for Netflix became known.
Yoozoo employees mourn the loss of company founder Lin Qi
Yoozoo employs more than 2000 people worldwide, including around 250 at the German subsidiary Bigpoint, which was taken over by the Chinese company in 2016.
The death of the company founder caused horror among the employees. They gathered outside his office in Shanghai on Friday and mourned the tragic incident. (jv)