Jiabawuge was wounded in a gunfight on June 14 while pursuing a suspected drug dealer in a mountainous area of Liangshan Prefecture in southwest China’s Sichuan Province.
“Leave me behind. Keep pursuing the suspect,” the 34-year-old told his drug enforcer colleagues in the middle of the chase.
The man they were after was arrested the following day in Daliangshan Mountain. Jiabawuge, however, was not there to celebrate the successful capture. The decorated police officer, who had nearly a decade of experience going after criminals, died of his wounds, leaving behind his wife, a five-year-old daughter and a one-year-old son.
His memorial service was held on June 17, and thousands of local residents paid their respects.
Jiabawuge was the cousin of Ji Jie, a famous Chinese singer. Ji wrote a piece praising his cousin’s heroism, and shared it on Weibo, China’s Twitter-like social media platform. The post has been shared nearly 10,000 times.
The singer recalled his childhood with his cousin, who grew up on a farm. The boy didn’t go to school until he was 12 and studied hard to become a police officer.
