Lin Wenqin, the founder of Chinese restaurant brand Meiyihao, was killed in a traffic accident last Thursday while driving an Nio ES8 in Fujian. The ES8 had the autopilot function NOP (Navigation On Pilot) turned on, Meiyihao said in an obituary released on Saturday.

Lin Lihong, a lawyer appointed by Lin's family to represent him in the case, was quoted by Sina Tech earlier Monday as saying that the Nio technician had access to the vehicle in question without the consent of the traffic police, who summoned him yesterday to give a statement.

If the result of the investigation is that the vehicle data was tampered with or destroyed, the technician will be suspected of a criminal offense, and Nio will be held fully responsible for the accident, the lawyer said.