Man found alive 11 years after being cremated
The bizarre case of mistaken identity has gripped China this week.
A man has been found alive 11 years after his family thought they had cremated him when a body that resembled him was discovered in weeds at the side of a road.
The remarkable story has emerged in China this week, leaving millions on social media in disbelief over the bizarre case of wrong identity.
Authorities in Chongqing on Wednesday revealed an old man behaving abnormally was reported to police by villagers in August. Officers took him in however could not determine his identity with the man refusing to answer questions, China News Network reported.
After several checks, police suspected he might be Zhuo Kangluo, a man who went missing in 2014 after escaping from a hospital after being sent there by his nursing home. Zhuo's grandson saw a missing persons poster for the man, and noticed his likeness to his grandfather. He went to visit the man and on arrival, the man reportedly began crying. He was also able to write out the names of his family.
On Tuesday, authorities were finally able to confirm the man was Zhuo Kangluo after DNA testing matched with his brother.
Photos shared by Chinese media show Zhuo after he was found with long hair and a beard.
A body believed to have been involved in a car accident in 2014 was previously identified as Zhuo. Villagers and Zhuo's cousin, niece and nephew identified the corpse as Zhuo at the time. His nephew reportedly declined an autopsy and the body was sent for cremation. DNA testing for non-immediate family members was not available at that time, The Paper reported.
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Authorities have declared they are working tirelessly to determine the true identity of the man found dead on the roadside, using DNA collected from the corpse at the time.
Zhou, who is not married and does not have any children, has had his household registration reinstated and the appropriate care is being provided to him.
China left stunned by remarkable story
The news proved to be one of the hottest trending topics on Chinese social media site Weibo this week, with users shocked and left by the mistake.
Many questioned how is family had failed to see the man found dead was not their relative.
Others criticised authorities for handling the identification process "hastily".
"I'm speechless," one user stated.
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