A woman long known only by the alias "Meiyi" or Aunt Mei, a key suspect in one of China's most widely followed child trafficking cases, has been captured after years on the run, police in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, said on Saturday.

The Guangzhou Public Security Bureau said the capture marked a major breakthrough in the case involving Zhang Weiping and others. The suspect, surnamed Xie, was confirmed to be the woman known as "Meiyi", a central figure in the case.

During questioning, Xie confessed to trafficking children, police said. She has been detained, and the case remains under investigation.

The case dates back to between September 2003 and December 2005, when several children were abducted in locations including Zengcheng in Guangzhou and Boluo in Huizhou, both in Guangdong.

After the crimes were reported, the Ministry of Public Security and the Guangdong provincial public security department listed the case as a major supervised investigation. A joint task force comprising provincial, municipal and district police was established.

In 2016, police arrested Zhang Weiping and four other suspects. Zhang admitted to abducting and trafficking children and told investigators the children had been sold through "Meiyi".

In June 2017, Guangzhou police released the first composite sketch of "Meiyi" and offered a reward for information.

In December 2018, the Guangzhou Intermediate People's Court sentenced Zhang Weiping and Zhou Rongping to death for child trafficking, deprived them of political rights for life, and ordered the confiscation of all personal property.

In December 2021, the Guangdong Higher People's Court upheld the death sentences on appeal. Two other defendants were sentenced to life imprisonment, and one received a 10-year prison term.

Under Article 240 of China's Criminal Law, trafficking women and children refers to acts committed for the purpose of sale, including abduction, kidnapping, purchase, sale, transport, or transfer of women or children. The crime is punishable by fixed-term imprisonment of not less than five years and a fine, while especially serious cases may carry the death penalty along with confiscation of property.

As part of efforts to reunite separated families, the task force worked with victims' families and other groups to continue searching for the missing children. Between 2019 and 2024, all of the trafficked children in the case were found and reunited with their families.

In April 2023, Zhang and other principal offenders were executed. However, because the true identity of "Meiyi" remained unknown, the woman at the center of the case had not been brought to justice.

Police said investigators continued to revisit locations, follow up on leads, publish sketches and solicit tips from the public over the years. In 2025, the task force identified a woman surnamed Xie whose features closely matched those associated with "Meiyi". Further verification confirmed her identity.

The case drew national attention, in part, because of the long search by the parents. The arrest of Xie marks a significant development in a case that has haunted many families for years, underscoring the long and difficult road parents have taken in their search for justice and reunion.

One of the victims, Shen Cong, was abducted from a rental home in Zengcheng, Guangzhou, in January 2005 and trafficked to Zijin county in Heyuan, Guangdong. He was found in March 2020. Shen's father, Shen Junliang, said he was deeply moved upon learning of Xie's arrest.

"When I heard the news, my heart was pounding," he said, adding that he had spent years pursuing clues related to "Meiyi".

Another parent, Zhong Dingyou, whose son Zhong Bin was also among the victims, said the news brought mixed emotions after two decades of searching.

"I felt excited and relieved, but at the same time, I could not fully feel happy," he said. "When I think about everything we went through in searching for our son over the past 20 years, it is hard to describe."