Rumours about the identity, fortune and bank balance of a wealthy heiress who crashed her Rolls-Royce into a Mercedes in Sydney’s eastern suburbs have spread like wildfire on Chinese social media.
LanLan Yang, 23, was allegedly behind the wheel of her $1.5million Rolls-Royce Cullinan in the early hours of July 27 when she smashed into a van driven by George Plassaras, radio king Kyle Sandilands’ chauffeur.
Plassaras was left in hospital with life-threatening injuries. Sandilands was not in the car at the time. Yang was charged by NSW Police with causing bodily harm by misconduct and refusing or failing to submit a breath test.
Yang’s extraordinary apparent wealth has sparked widespread interest in Australia – particularly after the Daily Mail revealed she owned two Rolls-Royces and lived in a luxury apartment in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.
And in recent days, the speculation has taken off in China, where she has become the subject of wild, inaccurate and very viral claims posted on Chinese platforms Douyin and Weibo, plus mainstream Chinese media reports.
A series of widely-viewed Chinese social media posts falsely claimed that Yang paid up an $80million AUD bond to get bail from Waverley Local Court in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.
They also claimed, without naming a source or providing any corroboration, that authorities found she had $270 billion sitting in a local bank account when she was arrested.
The first claim about the bond is demonstrably false – a court spokesperson told the Daily Mail there was ‘no monetary condition stipulated by police’ as part of her bail agreement. The bank balance claim is impossible to confirm.
The Daily Mail confronted Lanlan Yang, 23, outside Rose Bay Police Station earlier this month where she declined to comment on the injuries suffered by Kyle Sandilands’ chauffeur
An apparently AI-generated image of Lanlan Yang from Chinese social media, featuring both her car and the Sydney Opera House
Fevered Chinese social media speculation also claimed she uses the English name ‘Wendy’ and that she is a former University of NSW student whose fortune stems from the iron ore trade.
Some users even claim her minder – seen when the Daily Mail confronted Yang outside Rose Bay Police Station last month – has the rank of lieutenant colonel with the Beijing police special duty unit. This could not be confirmed and is likely false.
Yang ignored questions about the charges she faces, her ability to afford two Rolls-Royces, and Plassaras’s significant injuries when our reporter crossed paths with her on July 30.
She kept her head down and climbed into a chauffeur-driven minivan, a stark contrast to the two luxury vehicles she is known to own.
The crash left Plassaras with a broken spine, ribs, hips and femurs, a ruptured spleen and diaphragm, and a torn-open abdomen.
Sandilands described his chauffeur Mr Plassaras as the ‘greatest employee ever’.
‘What did [he] say when he was taken away in the ambulance? He asked for his mobile phone so he could do what?’ he said.
‘This is a guy at 4.30 in the morning after he has been cut out of his vehicle, he’s been trapped in his van for an hour, this poor bloke.
Yang, seen after she was granted bail at Waverley Police Station. A court spokesman confirmed to the Daily Mail that no amount of money was stipulated as a bond by police as part of her bail conditions – despite wild claims on Chinese social media
The reason for Yang’s wealth remains unclear despite wild speculation in both Australia and on Chinese social media
Driver to the rich and famous George Plassaras was left in hospital with life-threatening injuries by the crash (above) Sandilands was not in the car at the time
‘And he asks the ambo: ‘Get my phone so I can make sure Kyle’s all right for the week.’
Neighbours at Yang’s elite rental block, which caters to ‘discerning clientele,’ describe her as polite but rarely seen.
They say she occupies the building’s prized penthouse and decorates her car with ultra-exclusive Labubu toys.
She also owns a second unregistered white Rolls-Royce Ghost Convertible worth up to $800,000, which sits unused in her Vaucluse penthouse garage.
The building’s car lift can only take 3,000kg, forcing her to park her heavier Cullinan SUV in the street.
CCTV footage of the crash appears to show Yang’s SUV veering into oncoming traffic before the head-on impact.
Yang is on conditional bail ahead of her August 15 appearance at Downing Centre Local Court.
Her bail conditions ban her from driving, require her to remain in her penthouse between 8pm and 6am, and to report to police three times a week.
The Daily Mail previously revealed Yang also owns a second unregistered white Rolls-Royce Ghost Convertible worth up to $800,000
