Detective Nie Haifen: From a “100% Conviction Rate” to a Shocking Miscarriage of Justice
Nie Haifen, born in September 1965, served for years as the captain of the interrogation squad in the Criminal Investigation Division of the Hangzhou Public Security Bureau. Since joining the police force in 1986, she spent decades in criminal investigations. According to official narratives at the time, she led or co-led over 350 major criminal cases, with more than 300 resulting in first-instance death sentences, achieving an alleged 100% accuracy rate. This stellar record earned her the title of National “March 8th Red Banner Pacesetter” in 2006—the first female police officer to receive this honor since 1960. Praised in a CCTV documentary as an “impeccable” detective, she was hailed as a “Goddess Detective.” Yet, behind this glamorous facade lay a monumental miscarriage of justice that would eventually shock the nation.
In May 2003, a heinous rape and murder case, known as the “5·19 Case,” occurred in Hangzhou. Two Anhui truck drivers, uncle Zhang Gaoping and nephew Zhang Hui, were identified as prime suspects simply because they had given a hitchhiking ride to the murdered girl. During the investigation, no physical evidence—such as fingerprints or hair—linking the two men to the crime was found at the scene. Furthermore, DNA extracted from under the victim’s fingernails did not match either of them. However, in a justice system that heavily favored confessions over physical evidence, Nie, as the head of interrogation, chose to ignore this crucial exculpatory evidence.
Under Nie’s direction, the police subjected the Zhangs to high-intensity “shock interrogations.” Through sleep deprivation and extreme fatigue tactics, the two men were forced to fabricate details of the crime, producing contradictory confessions. Additionally, a fellow inmate named Yuan Lianfang, acting as a “prison informant,” beat and coerced them into copying pre-written confessions. Relying on these illegally obtained statements, a case lacking direct physical evidence was packaged as an airtight “ironclad case.” In 2004, Zhang Hui was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve, and Zhang Gaoping received 15 years in prison. Both were sent to Xinjiang to serve their sentences, their lives completely shattered.
Throughout their decade behind bars, Zhang Gaoping never gave up his appeals. In 2005, Gou Haifeng, the actual perpetrator of a highly similar murder, was arrested and executed. Zhang Gaoping astutely pointed out this connection, but unfortunately, the police failed to promptly cross-reference Gou’s DNA with the “5·19 Case.” It wasn’t until 2011, with the intervention of lawyers and the media, that the Zhejiang High People’s Court ordered a case review. A DNA comparison ultimately confirmed Gou Haifeng as the true culprit. In March 2013, the court declared Zhang Hui and Zhang Gaoping not guilty, finally bringing justice to a decade-long ordeal.
Following the exoneration, the Zhejiang Political and Legal Affairs Commission established an investigation team to thoroughly review the case, officially initiating accountability procedures for Nie Haifen and other involved personnel in 2014. Although Nie ultimately avoided criminal prosecution, the case completely shattered her myth of a “100% conviction rate,” sparking profound societal reflections on the principles of “presumption of innocence” and “procedural justice.”
The lessons of history must not be forgotten; every judicial milestone is tied to the baseline of fairness and justice. At reThuc, we deconstruct major social events that have sparked profound societal reflection into individual historical nodes. Currently, key milestones of the Nie Haifen and Zhangs’ wrongful conviction case are being officially released by rethuc. We invite you to visit reThuc to apply for minting your own social event NFT, digitally witnessing and commemorating this painful yet pivotal battle that propelled the advancement of China’s rule of law.