'Qigong master' murder suspect charms snakes and celebs

"Qigong master" or "swindler", photos of Svengali Wang Lin cozying up to China's biggest celebrities had already made him famous, even before he was detained on suspicion of murder.

Wang, 63, claims to be a master of qigong, a combination of a martial art and meditation. He was detained this week along with three others in east China's Jiangxi Province in connection with the murder of a local businessman who was once his disciple.

What really set Chinese social media alight is Wang's penchant for pictures of himself, often waving handfuls of harmless snakes that he has conjured from thin air, arm-in-arm with the nation's favorite stars, most corrupt officials and richest business people. Here's Wang with Alibaba's billionaire chairman Jack Ma; now Wang and Jackie Chan. Look, it's Wang and pop singer Faye Wong! And now we see Wang snuggling up to actress Zhao Wei. The list goes ever on... Jet Li; Stanley Ho; corrupt former railways minister Liu Zhijun; Zhu Mingguo, a former senior official from Guangdong Province expelled from the Party for corruption...

Netizens have not been hesitant to mock this elite group, but thus far, Wang's famous selfie buddies have remained stubbornly silent.

"Be they politicians, actors or sports stars, the underpants of Chinese elites were ripped off," Wang Shuo, a famous Chinese writer and playwright, wrote on Sina Weibo. "These people lack basic knowledge of science, are intellectually weak and lack social responsibility. When scum become the elite, it is the sorrow of the times."

Writer Wu Xiaobo, however, defended Wang's celebrity followers in a widely shared article, saying those who consulted Wang should not be ridiculed.

"Those who went to see Wang are merely curious about life. They have a passion for seeking the truth about the human body and the unknown and just asked the wrong person. Curiosity kills the cat," Wu wrote, arguing people should stand in awe of "special powers" like qigong.

Wu's comments directed the discussion on to whether celebrities should publicly worship mystics like Wang.

"It's not a problem if the elite worship qigong masters, because it's a matter of personal choice," said Hu Saimeng, commentator in Asian Newsweek. "It says a lot about their taste, aspirations, spiritual cultivation and pursuits."

Some have speculated Wang and his ilk are popular among celebrities because they serve as brokers between corrupt officials and themselves, conduits to the highest strata of corrupt connections.

Wang has been lampooned in the media before, accused of amassing a huge fortune through fanciful claims of curing illness, even cancer.

The murder victim, Zou Yong, a company president, was kidnapped on July 9 and killed sometime after. Zou was introduced to Wang in 2002. In a TV interview in 2013, Zou told how he paid 5 million yuan (800,000 U.S. dollars) in 2009 to become Wang's disciple. Zou claims that Wang then extorted nearly 30 million yuan from him.

Wang has been previously investigated for possession of a gun, unlicensed medical practice, bribery and fraud. Local police and health authorities launched an investigation in 2013 but failed to make any headway due to lack of evidence.