Anita Mui’s ashes were stolen 23 years after her death. Fans will post to find clues, and her brother Mui Qiming speaks out

China News Service, October 11th. October 10th is the 63rd birthday of the late Hong Kong music queen Anita Mui. That night, Anita Mui International Fan Club issued an emergency statement, saying that since July this year, it was discovered that Anita Mui’s ashes placed in the Haihui Tower of Po Lin Monastery in Lantau Island were stolen. The ashes have not been recovered for nearly three months after calling the police. They called on Hong Kong citizens to provide clues and work together to find the ashes.

In response to this, Anita Mui's brother, Mui Qiming, was shocked when interviewed by the media, saying bluntly, "It's a big joke." He also said that he would immediately ask why Lantau Island's management was so poor, and also ask the police for any new clues.

Anita Mui (data map) Picture source: Concert screenshots

disappearing ashes

Anita Mui International Fan Club revealed in a statement that on July 18 this year, when fans went to pay homage at the Hoi Hui Pagoda of Po Lin Monastery in Lantau Island, they discovered that the door screws where Anita Mui's ashes were stored were loose and the urn inside was missing. Fans immediately notified Anita Mui's family and called the police for help. The case was handed over to the Lantau Police District Crime Squad for follow-up.

However, it has been nearly three months since the family called the police, and there has still been no progress. In the statement, the fan club implored citizens who had visited the Hoi Hui Pagoda or Po Lin Temple area on or before July 18 this year, and if they had witnessed suspicious persons or found someone holding suspected urns or other utensils, please contact their families or the police as soon as possible, and also called on the drivers who drove there to provide driving recorder footage.

Anita Mui International Fan Club releases statement

This sudden incident also brought the "secret past" of Anita Mui's ashes to the public eye again.

Anita Mui died of cervical cancer in 2003. In order to allow her daughter to enjoy absolute purity and not be disturbed, her mother Qin Meijin adopted an extremely low-key approach to the arrangement of her ashes. Not only were the words "Anita Mui" not engraved on the memorial tablet, but no posthumous photos were affixed. Instead, Anita Mui's nickname, "Zhu Nu's Shrine in Taishan, Guangdong," was used. The birth and death taboos were also recorded using the lunar calendar.

At that time, Mui's mother claimed that her ashes were stored in the Big Buddha Creek. Fans only learned the truth by chance encounter with the staff the year after Anita Mui's death. In order to protect the idol, the fan club also chose to keep it secret. It was not until the 12th anniversary of Anita Mui's death in 2015 that the true resting place was officially exposed to the public.

Family members speak out

What is even more depressing is that on August 30, more than a month after Anita Mui's ashes were discovered stolen, the 102-year-old mother Mei accidentally fainted while eating and was sent to the hospital and passed away.

Earlier, Mei Qiming publicly stated to the media that his mother's last wish was to be "buried together with Anita Mui." However, as Anita Mui's ashes have not yet been recovered, and because Mei Qiming and other members of the family have serious differences over the burial method of her mother, whether Mei's mother can finally be "reunioned" with her daughter is still facing huge uncertainties.

On the evening of the 10th, Hong Kong media called Mei Qiming and asked him if he knew that his sister's ashes had been stolen. Mei Qi was obviously very surprised and immediately kept asking "why" and "when". When he learned that fans had discovered and called the police as early as July, he bluntly said that the fans did not notify him before calling the police, and the police have not contacted him to assist in the investigation.

Anita Mui’s brother, Mui Qiming (data map) Picture source: Hong Kong Sing Tao Headlines

When asked when he last went to pay homage to his sister, Mei Qiming sounded helpless and admitted that he had not been there for a long time, especially this year. However, he emphasized that of course he was very concerned about this matter as a family member and angrily criticized Lantau Island for its mismanagement.

The ashes of many celebrities were stolen

In fact, the theft of Anita Mui's ashes is not the first case in Hong Kong.

In recent years, there has been a sensational "Ashes Burglary Syndicate" in Hong Kong. The ashes of many celebrities and wealthy people placed at Po Fook Hill in Shatin were serially stolen. Between May and August 2025, thieves used professional techniques to pry open the columbarium, remove the ashes and restore the appearance, making it difficult to detect during routine inspections.

The ashes of the late generation martial arts superstar and gold medal director Liu Jialiang were stolen. Image source: Hong Kong Sing Tao Headlines

Among them, the ashes of the late Yongsheng Film Company boss Xiang Huasheng were stolen in August 2025. At that time, after the thieves succeeded, they sent photos of the urn and extorted a ransom of up to HK$60 million from Liu Jialiang's widow, Weng Jingjing. Weng Jingjing had a tough attitude and refused to pay, saying "I won't even give you six yuan." Subsequently, the Organized Crime and Triad Investigation Bureau (O Ji) of the Hong Kong Police intervened strongly and successfully recovered the ashes of Liu Jialiang, Xiang Huasheng and others in early 2026, and arrested the gangsters involved.