EXETER — Hong Qi contacted Devon and Cornwall police on 20 December after discovering his bank accounts had been frozen by Chinese authorities, leaving him unable to pay for accommodation for his wife and children. He rang the UK non-emergency number 101 at 2:54pm to speak with the nearest police force through an interpreter, fearing his family would have to sleep rough due to a lack of funds.

Hong Qi claims the interpreter assigned to the 20-minute call made hostile remarks, asking, "China is so good, why did you come out? You came out to claim political asylum? You brought your children out here to suffer." He also alleges the interpreter said, "I will not translate your emotions. On what grounds should the British help you? If you have money, it is convenient everywhere."

On 21 January, Devon and Cornwall police informed Hong Qi that the interpreter was employed by a contractor paid £130,000 annually to provide translation services. A police spokesperson later said, "The Devon and Cornwall police professional standards department carefully reviewed the complaint, but as the interpreter was employed by a third party and not the force, no further action was taken."

Hong Qi requested a copy of the recording of his call, but police failed to provide it. The Information Commissioner’s Office subsequently issued a reprimand to the force for this failure. Hong Qi has since been granted asylum in the UK.

Concerns about interpreter reliability in UK policing have been raised. David Wilson, a regional coordinator for the organised immigration crime domestic taskforce at West Midlands police and former detective inspector, said, "The United Workers Department will co-opt everybody. We have had it that people will absolutely not talk in front of interpreters. So we have had compromise. This is not unusual. The compromise will come both from the Chinese state and organised crime groups." He added that a solution is to increase the number of Mandarin speakers within British policing.