Li Xinran/Shanghai Daily news

A high-ranking district official who reportedly went AWOL in Paris while on a government business trip was simply seeking medical treatment, the Luwan District government said yesterday.

Xin Weimin, deputy district director, returned to Shanghai on Saturday to continue treatment for problems with his neck vertebrae, according to the district's publicity department. Xin is on sick leave and hasn't gone to work, the department said yesterday.