BEIJING – Relatives of a Chinese taxi driver who won more than half a million U.S. dollars in a lottery beat up his pregnant wife, accusing the couple of not sharing the money fairly, state media said. After winning five million yuan ($604,000) in the central province of Hubei last October, the driver surnamed Wang and his wife handed out 100,000 yuan to each of their brothers, sisters and other close family members, a total of 1.4 million yuan.

But that wasn‘t enough for an uncle and others who paid unwelcome visits to Wang‘s home and belligerently demanded more money, mobile phones, motorcycles and even cars, the Beijing Youth Daily said. Eventually, the disgruntled relatives and a group of about 20 others armed with wooden sticks barged into Wang‘s home and attacked his wife, who was interviewed by the newspaper in a local hospital. Other family members were hurt in the melee.

Doctors said it was unclear whether Wang‘s wife, three months pregnant, could carry the baby to term, it said. She told the daily she planned to return to the village to plant crops but still feared for her safety and had contacted a lawyer. Reuters