Police officers are seen in Wuhan, China, on April 4, 2020. (AP/Ng Han Guan)
Police are seen on the streets of the Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic, on April 4, 2020. (AP/Ng Han Guan)

Chinese journalist Li Zehua missing in Wuhan since late February

Chinese freelance journalist Li Zehua went missing on February 26, 2020, after live-streaming security agents entering his temporary apartment in the city of Wuhan, according to news reports.

Li traveled to Wuhan from Beijing to report on the COVID-19 outbreak after journalist Chen Qiushi went missing in the city in early February, according to a post Li made to his YouTube channel on February 11, where he uploads his reporting. More than 2 million people have viewed his videos.

On February 17, Li posted a video saying that a local neighborhood committee had not carried out the basic countermeasures promised by authorities, and had tried to cover up information about infected cases in the community.

On February 21, he visited a local crematorium and spoke to a porter who claimed that the crematorium was hiring more workers with higher wages to transport bodies. On February 24, Li interviewed a Chinese worker who traveled to Wuhan for work but got stranded due to the lockdown of the city.

On February 26, Li posted two live-stream videos claiming that state security agents were pursuing him. The stream ended abruptly with two unidentified individuals entering the apartment. He has not posted any videos since then, or made any other posts on his Weibo or Twitter accounts.

CPJ called the Wuhan Public Security Bureau for comment, but no one answered.