Toy company boss hangs himself after global scare over paint's lead level

THE head of a Chinese toy company involved in a worldwide Fisher-Price recall after its products were found to contain too much lead has hanged himself.

Zhang Shuhong, boss of the Lida Toy Company in Guangdong province, was found dead in his factory workshop.

About 1.5 million pre-school toys made by Lida for Fisher-Price, were recalled across the globe by the US company last week. The recalled toys included popular characters such as Elmo and Big Bird and dozens of other items.

It follows the recall of another company's Chinese-made wooden Thomas & Friends toy trains in June because some of them contained lead paint.

Reports in China said a close friend of Zhang, who was one of Lida's major suppliers, had sold the dodgy paint to the toy maker. A factory worker said: "[He] was so evil-hearted to have sold the fake paint to our boss ... our boss was ruined by his best friend."