China: Neil Heywood's widow 'gagged by police'

The Chinese widow of Neil Heywood has reportedly been gagged by police.

The British businessman, 41, may have been murdered in Chongqing by Gu Kailai, the wife of Bo Xilai, one of the country's most prominent politicians, according to the Chinese government.

Heywood's widow, Wang Lulu, and his two children still live in a three-storey house in a gated compound in the north of Beijing. She has not commented publicly on her husband's death, and one source told reporters on Friday that she had been silenced by the authorities.

"Police officers questioned her recently and warned her not to speak to the foreign media," the source said. On a recent visit to the Heywoods' home, a man who appeared to be a plain-clothes policeman stood outside the door.

The source added that Heywood's family was "very close" to Bo and Gu. "She [Gu] was the godmother of [Heywood's] children," he said.

Heywood's other family members have also not commented on the allegation of murder, and have previously insisted that he died of a heart attack.

Following the disclosure of the crime by a former police chief in Chongqing to the US consulate in Chengdu in February, Britain called for an investigation.

When he died last November, Heywood's body was cremated before a post mortem examination could be carried out. However, a wealth of information could be available about his final hours.

He is thought to have flown to Chongqing after he attended a motor show in Beijing on November 11. At Chongqing's Jianbei airport, staff said all public areas were blanketed by CCTV that would have captured his arrival. Limousine companies at the airport said they had no record of a booking in Heywood's name in November, while Chongqing's taxis have CCTV cameras that would have caught his movements.