The detention of Mr. Meng, 64, is an audacious step by the party, even by the standards of the increasingly authoritarian system under the leadership of President Xi Jinping. China has sought legitimacy and a leadership role in international organizations, and Mr. Meng’s appointment in November 2016 as the president of Interpol, the first Chinese head of the global policing agency, was seen by many as a significant step in that direction. His detention undermines that campaign.

Mr. Meng’s appointment “was considered quite an achievement for China and a sign of its international presence and growing influence,” said Julian Ku, a professor at Hofstra University’s Maurice A. Deane School of Law, who has studied China’s relationship with international law.

While China may have had its eye on placing its citizens in other top posts at prominent global organizations, “the fact that Meng was ‘disappeared’ without any notice to Interpol will undermine this Chinese global outreach effort,” Mr. Ku said. “It is hard to imagine another international organization feeling comfortable placing a Chinese national in charge without feeling nervous that this might happen.”

The announcement of Mr. Meng’s detention came hours after his wife, Grace, told reporters in Lyon, France, that before her husband had vanished on a trip to China, he had sent her a phone message with an emoji of a knife.

She interpreted the knife image to mean “he is in danger,” she said in a brief statement to reporters on Sunday in Lyon, where the two were living and where Interpol is headquartered.</s>Tweet with a location

You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more</s>PARIS (Reuters) - Interpol said on Sunday that Meng Hongwei - whom China says is being investigated over suspected violations of the law - had resigned as president of the international police organization.

“Today, Sunday 7 October, (at) the Interpol General Secretariat in Lyon, France received the resignation of Mr Meng Hongwei as President of Interpol with immediate effect,” Interpol said in a statement.

Interpol said South Korean national Kim Jong Yang would becomes its acting president, while it would appoint a new president at a Nov 18-21 meeting of the organization in Dubai.</s>BEIJING (Reuters) - China’s antigraft watchdog said late on Sunday that the Chinese authorities were investigating Meng Hongwei, who heads the global law enforcement organization Interpol, for suspected violations of the law.

Meng, who is also a vice minister of public security in China, had been reported missing after traveling from France, where Interpol is based, to China, and his wife has been placed under police protection after receiving threats.

French police were investigating what is officially termed in France a “worrying disappearance”.</s>BEIJING - China said on Sunday that it was investigating Meng Hongwei, after the head of the global law enforcement organisation Interpol and Chinese vice minister for security was reported missing in France.

Meng had been reported missing by his wife after traveling last month from France, where Interpol is based, to China.

“Public Security Ministry Vice Minister Meng Hongwei is currently under investigation by the National Supervisory Commission for suspected violations of law,” the Chinese anti-graft body said in a brief statement on its website.

The statement was the first from China since Meng’s disappearance was reported in France on Friday.

When asked about the Chinese announcement on Sunday, France’s Interior Ministry said it had no information.

The French ministry said on Friday that Meng’s family had not heard from him since 25 September, and the French authorities said his wife had been placed under police protection after receiving threats.

French police have been investigating what is officially termed in France a “worrying disappearance”.

Interpol had said it had asked Beijing to clarify Meng’s situation. The organisation had no immediate comment on Sunday.

Local French media reported that Meng’s wife had issued a brief statement from a hotel in Lyon, in which she expressed her concerns over the situation.

“As long as I can’t see my husband in front of me, speaking to me, I can’t have any confidence,” Grace Meng was quoted as saying by French TV stations and Sunday newspapers which added she made the comments with her back to a TV camera, in order to hide her appearance.

Reuters could not confirm those comments attributed to her.

Meng, 64, was named to the post of Interpol president in late 2016, part of a broader Chinese effort to gain leadership positions in key international organisations.

Presidents of Interpol are seconded from their national administrations and remain in their home post while representing the international policing body.

Interpol, which groups 192 countries and is usually focused on finding people who are missing or wanted, is run on a day-to-day basis by its secretary general, Juergen Stock.

When Meng was named Interpol’s president, human rights groups expressed concern that Beijing might try to leverage his position to pursue dissidents abroad. Beijing has in the past pressed countries to arrest and deport to China citizens it accuses of crimes, from corruption to terrorism.

Under President Xi Jinping, China has been engaged in a crackdown on corruption.</s>Interpol said Sunday it had received the resignation of its president, deepening the mystery of the disappearance of Meng Honwei, a Chinese government official who has been missing since last week.

His wife said Sunday her last contact with him came via a WhatsApp text message with a knife emoji and the instructions, “Wait for my call.”

Grace Meng delivered the information to reporters from her hotel room in Lyon, France.

Interpol tweeted Sunday night that it received Meng’s resignation and that Kim Jong Yang of South Korea, a vice president representing Asia on Interpol’s executive committee, would serve as acting president until Interpol’s general assembly picks a permanent president next month.

Interpol has asked Chinese authorities for information about Meng Hongwei. The disciplinary arm of China’s Communist Party released a statement saying Meng “is under investigation by the National Supervision Commission for alleged violations of laws.”

The Interpol statement announcing Meng’s resignation did not mention that he is missing.

Grace Meng said her husband’s whereabouts is a matter that “belongs to the international community.” She added, “Although I can’t see my husband, we are always connected by heart.”

Asked about the text message Grace Meng received, the French Interior Ministry said through a spokesman it has no information to share.

In a statement posted to Twitter on Saturday, Interpol Secretary General Jurgen Stock said, “Interpol has requested through official law enforcement channels clarification from China’s authorities on the status of Interpol President Meng Hongwei.”

“Interpol’s General Secretariat looks forward to an official response from China’s authorities to address concerns over the President’s well-being,” the statement continued.

Meng Hongwei, according to Chinese state news agency Xinhua, was the first Chinese official to become president of Interpol, which is based in Lyon. He was not on French soil when he was last seen, according a senior French law enforcement official, who declined to say whether he was in China.

Meng’s wife went to police in Lyon on Thursday to report his disappearance, according to the French Interior Ministry. She told police that she last heard from him 10 days prior and had received threats on social media and by telephone, according to the statement.

“France is looking into the situation of the President of Interpol and is concerned about the threats his wife has received,” the statement said.

It adds that a “suitable police mechanism” was put in place to guarantee Grace Meng’s safety, and that the prosecutor’s office in Lyon has opened an investigation.

A spokeswoman for Interpol, who declined to give her name, refused to say whether Meng had been on official business in China.

“Interpol is aware of media reports in connection with the alleged disappearance of Interpol President Meng Hongwei. This is a matter for the relevant authorities in both France and China,” Interpol said in a statement, declining to comment further.

Meng, who is China’s vice minister for public security and a former head of Interpol China, was elected president of Interpol in November 2016.

The South China Morning Post, a Hong Kong-based newspaper known for its connections inside the Chinese government, said Meng was “taken away” for questioning upon landing in China last week. The newspaper cited an unnamed source.

Meng’s vanishing act bears hallmarks of what happens to senior officials when they are suspected of violating party rules, usually alleged corruption.

Meng oversees the agency’s executive committee, which sets overall strategy. Interpol’s secretary-general is responsible for the day-to-day operations.</s>China said Monday the president of Interpol, who vanished after returning to his homeland, was under investigation for possible criminal activity as his wife voiced concern for his life after he sent her a final text message with a knife emoji.

Beijing had remained tight-lipped about the fate of Meng Hongwei, who is also China's vice minister for public security, since his disappearance was disclosed by French officials on Friday.

The National Supervisory Commission, which handles corruption cases involving public servants, broke the official silence early Monday, saying in a one-line statement that Meng "is currently under investigation on suspicion of violating the law".

It is the latest high-profile disappearance in China, where a number of top government officials, billionaire business magnates and even an A-list celebrity have vanished for weeks or months at a time.

When -- or if -- they reappear, it is often in court.

Meng, the first Chinese president of Interpol, was last heard from on September 25 as he left Lyon -- where the international police organisation is based -- for China.

The agency's secretary general Juergen Stock, who oversees day-to-day operations, had said Saturday that it was seeking "clarification" on his whereabouts from Chinese authorities.

French police had opened an investigation into Meng's disappearance last week, according to a source close to the inquiry.

Meng, 64, had lived with his wife and two children in France since being elected Interpol president in 2016.

Speaking to reporters in France on Sunday, Meng's wife Grace said she had received a message from his phone containing a knife emoji before his disappearance.

"This matter belongs to the international community," she told a press conference.

That day, his wife said he sent a message telling her to "wait for my call", before sending the emoji signifying danger.

"I'm not sure what has happened to him," she told reporters before the anti-graft commission issued its statement.

Later, upon learning about the announcement from Chinese authorities, she told AFP that her husband's case will be under the watch of "international law and international public opinion", describing the situation as "political ruin".

China's recently established National Supervisory Commission holds sweeping powers to investigate the country's public servants with few requirements for transparency.

Although the commission did not detail the allegations against Meng, its mandate is to investigate corruption cases as part of Chinese President Xi Jinping's anti-graft campaign.

Some critics of the effort -- which has punished more than one million officials -- say it also functions as a tool for Xi to eliminate his political rivals.

Meng rose up the ranks of the country's domestic security apparatus when it was under the leadership of Zhou Yongkang, a rival to Xi and the highest-ranking official to be brought down on corruption charges.

Zhou -- who was sentenced to life in prison in 2014 -- was subsequently accused of conspiring to seize state power and authorities have continued working to root out his influence.

In that role, Meng has been entrusted with a number of sensitive portfolios, including the country's counter-terrorism division, and he was in charge of the response to several major incidents in China's fractious western region of Xinjiang.

Critics of Meng's 2016 election to Interpol's presidency said he would use the position to help China target dissidents abroad under the guise of pursuing corrupt officials.

Interpol has downplayed the concerns, saying the president has little influence over the organisation's day-to-day operations, which are handled by secretary general Stock, a German.

The Chinese effort to track down corrupt officials abroad, known as Operation Fox Hunt, has led to claims in some countries that Chinese law-enforcement agents have been operating covertly on their soil without the approval or consent of local authorities.

China currently has 44 outstanding red notices, mostly related to murder, intentional injury and drug smuggling, according to Interpol's web site.

During Meng's tenure, Interpol issued a red notice for fugitive Chinese billionaire Guo Wengui, who threatened to reveal corruption at the country's highest levels.

Authorities in China and Hong Kong have accused Guo, a real estate tycoon who resides in the United States, of laundering billions of dollars among other crimes.</s>Meng Hongwei, the president of the international law enforcement agency Interpol who mysteriously disappeared last week, was missing because he was detained by the Chinese government. On Sunday night, three days after Meng was reported missing, the Chinese Communist Party announced that he had been detained as part of an investigation by the party’s corruption and loyalty watchdog, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. which suspected him of “violating the law.’ ” On Saturday, Interpol had demanded that China provide information about Meng’s whereabouts, but officials in the country, which is currently celebrating a weeklong holiday, did not reply. On Sunday, after Meng’s detention was confirmed, Interpol then announced that he had resigned from his post effective immediately.

The last person in contact with the 64-year-old Meng was his wife,

Grace, who told reporters before China’s announcement that she had received a WhatsApp message from him containing nothing but a knife emoji after he had arrived in China, which came several minutes after a message which said, “wait for my call.” When she heard nothing more, she alerted French police and reported him missing on Thursday.

The secretary general of Interpol heads the agency, while Meng had the symbolic but powerful position of running its executive committee, which works on official strategy. He was the first Chinese national to hold the position, which he was appointed to in 2016. And though Meng lives with his family Lyon, France, where Interpol is headquartered, he also retained an official role in China as the country’s vice minister of public security. In the end, China clearly decided that his role at Interpol did not prevent them from detaining him and not even admitting it for days. China has been known to carry out such detentions for years. It is not yet what Meng did to make himself a target.

Interpol still hasn’t confirmed whether or not he was visiting China on agency business. CNN reported earlier Sunday that the way Meng went missing was, in fact, pretty common when senior officials of China’s ruling Communist Party are accused of violating its rules. The South China Morning Post, a newspaper known for its connections to China’s government, itself reported that Meng had been detained for questioning by upon landing in China last week, and indicated he may have been the target of an ongoing anti-corruption campaign in the country — a campaign which Chinese president Xi Jinping has used to consolidate his power. In fact, according to the Times, Meng’s presidency had alarmed some human rights groups at the time he was appointed, as they worried he would use Interpol resources to help China go after dissidents abroad.</s>BEIJING: Chinese authorities say they are investigating the former president of Interpol for bribery and other crimes and indicate that political transgressions may have also landed him in trouble.

ALSO READ | Wife says Interpol officer sent knife image as danger signal

In a statement posted on a government website Monday, the authorities said Meng Hongwei, China's vice minister for public security, was being investigated due to his own "willfulness and for bringing trouble upon himself."

ALSO READ | Interpol asks China for information on its missing President​

Interpol announced Sunday that Meng had resigned as president of the international police agency, effective immediately, shortly after China made a brief announcement that Meng was under investigation.

Meng's unexplained disappearance in China late last month, which had prompted the French government and Interpol to make their concerns known publicly, threatened to tarnish Beijing's image.</s>Interpol says it has received the resignation of Meng Hongwei, the Chinese president of the international police organisation who went missing one week ago.

A statement released by Interpol on Sunday said that Meng has resigned with immediate effect.

Senior vice president Kim Jong Yang of South Korea will become acting president, pending the election of a successor. The statement gave no further details.

The announcement came shortly after China's top anti-corruption body said that Meng is under investigation in that country, ending days of speculation about his whereabouts but still leaving many questions unanswered.

A brief statement on the website of the Chinese National Supervisory Committee said only that Meng was suspected of breaking the law and was under "supervision", a euphemism for in detention.

His family lost touch with him after he travelled from France, where Interpol is based, to China.

Meng's wife has said her husband sent her an image of a knife before he disappeared.

Making her first public comments on the mystery surrounding Meng's whereabouts, Grace Meng on Sunday told reporters in Lyon, France - where Interpol is based - she thinks the knife was her husband's way of trying to tell her he was in danger.

She said she has had no further contact with him since the message was sent on September 25.

Four minutes before Meng shared the image, he sent a message saying "wait for my call", she said.

French prosecutors said on Friday they had launched an investigation.

On Saturday, Interpol formally requested China to notify the organisation of Meng's whereabouts.

Meng is also a vice minister of public security in China. He was elected president of Interpol in 2016 and was due to serve until 2020, according to the organisation's website.

It was unclear how Meng, the first Chinese national to lead Interpol, could have fallen foul of the Chinese authorities.

Meng's case draws parallels with other high-profile detentions in China, where President Xi Jinping has launched a massive anti-corruption drive since taking office five years ago.

The campaign has since punished over 1 million officials of varying stature, who are often suddenly detained without warning only to emerge later in detention.

It is highly irregular, however, for the head of an international organisation of the size and distinction of Interpol to disappear.

Meng's case follows another major disappearance in China of actress Fan Bingbing, who was out of the public eye for months until it was revealed last week that she had been under investigation by tax authorities.
The Communist Party of China announces that Interpol president Meng Hongwei is suspected of violating the law and is "under the supervision" of a party anticorruption watchdog. Hours later, Interpol announces that it has received his resignation.