China Says Toy Company Boss Killed Himself

Factory Made Nearly A Million Toys Recalled In U.S. Due To Lead Paint

(AP)  The head of a Chinese toy manufacturing company at the center of a huge U.S. recall has committed suicide, a state-run newspaper said Monday.

Zhang Shuhong, who ran the Lee Der Industrial Co. Ltd, killed himself at a warehouse over the weekend, days after China said it had temporarily banned exports by the company, the Southern Metropolis Daily said.

Lee Der made 967,000 toys recalled earlier this month by Mattel Inc. because they were made with paint found to have excessive amounts of lead. The plastic preschool toys, sold under the Fisher-Price brand in the U.S., included the popular Big Bird, Elmo, Dora and Diego characters.

An official who answered the telephone at Lee Der on Monday said he had not heard of the news.

The suicide comes less than a week after Mattel's announcement identifying Lee Der Industrial, in Guangdong province, as the manufacturer of the toys, which were sold under the Fisher-Price brand in the United States between May and August.

Mattel, the world's largest toy maker, at that time apologized to customers for the recall and said the move would cut pretax operating income by $30 million.

Mattel spokeswoman Jules Andres said on August 7th that all the toys that were recalled were made by the one vendor and that the company has "ceased accepting shipments from the facility."

She added that Mattel has shared the name of the vendor with competitors who may also be doing business with the Chinese company.

The Mattel spokeswoman said she did not know what other toys might have been made at the facility for other companies, but stressed that Mattel felt it was important for its competitors to have the information.

"We do not consider safety to be a competitive advantage," she said.

The Chinese vendor could not immediately be reached for comment. A man at a Lee Der Industrial Company in Guangdong province said it made cardboard boxes, not toys, while a woman who answered the phone at another number listed under the name said that company had gone bankrupt several years ago.

The Fisher-Price recall is the latest in a string of problems involving products imported from China.

In June, RC2 Corp. recalled 1.5 million wooden railroad toys and set parts from its Thomas & Friends Wooden Railway product line because of lead paint. Those toys were also made in China.

Earlier this year, a Chinese-made pet food ingredient was linked to the deaths of cats and dogs in North America. Since then, Chinese goods ranging from toothpaste to tires have been banned or recalled in numerous countries.

[ralan40]

This article neglects to mention that he killed himself with five gunshots to the head.
Posted by incog-nito at 06:39 PM : Aug 13, 2007

..perhaps it was because he hanged himself.

Only a rumormongering crackpot would think that China would allow any of it's people to own guns.

[tbweb]

5 gunshots to the head. Apparently he has some help from those $1 a day labors.

Posted by pug_ster at 10:30 PM : Aug 13, 2007,,,

It's physically impossible to shoot yourself 5 times in the head, therefore, suicide is b.u.l.l.s.h.i.t! Don't insult people China! After 1 shot you're done, 2 shots for sure!

[wolf888888]

YOU Yankees are all so selfish
If all Chinese donot buy your car,computer,electric apparatus.....
I think you will feel better when comes to this topic
All nation should exist harmonious.Animosity and war can not solve any problem.
AND that is the very problem of you YANGKEES
You are so extreme .Hegemony IS your style
I admit there is a little part of CHINESE product are not good,but if your say most of it are bad ,that can only indicat you have prejudice against Chinese
YOU extremests
No wonder 911 happened in your country,you and the terrorist are all extremests ,you have common language

[pugster]

5 gunshots to the head. Apparently he has some help from those $1 a day labors.

[burneb]

Note that the official China news SAYS the toymaker boss killed himself. But -- after another big embarrassment for China -- maybe he had some help.

Or not, but in the past some Chinese dissidents and defectors have suddenly and mysteriously been found insane, disappeared, or guilty of some capital offense.

The things that can happen to people in countries where the government can hold anyone incommunicado, avoid open trials, or account to the mere lowly public.

[nothappyatall]

Well no kidding, I was looking to buy a men's watch, Amazon shows 15,000 different models, 15,000 can you believe it?
I wanted a specific style, I found a lot of imported KRAP, even the old reliable Timex seems to have sold out and also went to almost all battery operated junk at prices from $4.99 or so to $135 (I didn't look higher) I figured if I was going to pay $135 for a watch it's going to be a mechanical one you wind up, not a BATTERY run digital watch. How is that krap any better than the $4.99 ones on the counter at the gas station? the $4.99 one will keep near perfect time as well.
$135 LOL
Plastic, imported KRAP, so I wound up going to Ebay and buying an $80 vintage 10K gold filled Bulova.

[linfinster]

I wonder how much Matell pd for those toys from China? Then, turned around to sell them here for what kind of profit? GREEDY XXXXX!

[sgtrds]

It also failed to mention it was a gun made in china for mattel.

Posted by rushlimpdrug at 06:46 PM : Aug 13, 2007

I used to LOVE the toy guns Mattel used to sell. I had a camouflage Thompson Sub-machine gun that you could pull the lever back on the side and it made the greatest sound when you fired it! I was too old by the time they came out with the toy M-16, but did get to play with a real one in Basic Training.

;-)

[rushlimpdrug]

This article neglects to mention that he killed himself with five gunshots to the head.
Posted by incog-nito

It also failed to mention it was a gun made in china for mattel.

[sgtrds]

Well now he doesn't have a sense of anything, because he's dead. Honor schmonor! Suicide is not the solution to any problem. Too bad that death is so glorified.

Posted by rudy654 at 05:45 PM : Aug 13, 2007

It'd be the solution to Bush, but he hasn't the balls to take the honorable wy out. Shame, I'm still hoping to live long enough to pis*s on his grave.