A long-standing case involving the seizure of gold from a man in Liaoning province three decades ago has reached its conclusion. On June 12th, it was learned that the Gaizhou City Public Security Bureau in Liaoning has returned the assets to Pan Yongjia and reached a settlement with him, leading Pan to withdraw his application for state compensation.

As previously reported, in May 1996, Pan Yongjia was detained by the Gaizhou City Public Security Bureau at Dalian Zhoushuizi Airport on suspicion of smuggling. His 2,859.2 grams of gold, which he claimed were legally purchased, were confiscated. That same year, after his wife paid a 50,000 yuan bail, Pan was released on bail pending trial. Pan stated that he never received any official documents concluding the case, such as a decision to drop the case, a decision to terminate the investigation, or a notice to lift the bail conditions. He was not informed of the case's outcome, and the seized gold was never returned.

On January 6, 2023, Pan, through his lawyer, filed an application for compensation. A "Decision Not to Accept" issued by the Gaizhou City Public Security Bureau on January 8th stated that, based on a review of the available evidence, Pan's claim had exceeded the statute of limitations and did not meet the conditions for application, leading to the decision not to accept it. Subsequently, Pan applied for a review with the Yingkou City Public Security Bureau. The Yingkou bureau determined that the decision not to accept the case by the responsible compensation authority was not in compliance with regulations. On April 28th, it issued a "Criminal Compensation Review Decision," ordering the Gaizhou City Public Security Bureau to make a new decision according to the law.