The head of a Chinese company that made Sesame Street and other toys that were recalled in the United States due to safety fears has committed suicide.
BEIJING: The head of a Chinese company that made Sesame Street and other toys that were recalled in the United States due to safety fears has committed suicide, a state-run newspaper reported on Monday.
Zhang Shuhong, the boss of Lee Der Industrial Co Ltd, was found dead in a factory warehouse in southern Guangdong province on Saturday, the Southern Metropolis newspaper said.
Fisher-Price, a subsidiary of Mattel, this month recalled nearly one million toys, including popular Sesame Street and Dora the Explorer-branded models sold in US stores, because of fears they contained toxic lead paint.
Many of the toys were produced by Lee Der.
The government last week ordered Lee Der and another toy manufacturer at the centre of a similar high-profile recall in the United States to suspend their exports.
Zhang, who is from Hong Kong, was found with "deep marks" on his neck, said the paper, based in the southern city of Guangzhou.
A company official surnamed Liu told the paper Zhang had committed suicide.
No further information was given on the exact cause of death, with the paper reporting that police were investigating.
The newspaper quoted Lee Der staff as saying Zhang was distraught over feeling he had been "hurt" by the supplier of the suspect paint, whom he had counted as a good friend.
China's national product-quality watchdog has blamed Lee Der's paint supplier for providing "fake lead-free paint powder" used on the toys.
The other toy manufacturer, Hansheng Woodware, made 1.5 million wooden "Thomas the Train" figures for US importer RC2 Corp.
Those products were recalled by the US company in June for similar fears over lead paint.
Phone calls to Lee Der on Monday went unanswered.
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