Interpol said its president, Meng Hongwei, resigned as Chinese authorities said he is under investigation for unspecified illegal conduct.
The international police agency said only that its general secretariat received Meng's resignation Sunday, effective immediately.
Meng was taken into custody immediately upon his arrival in China for questioning by authorities, the South China Morning Post reported, citing a source it didn't identify. His wife, Grace Meng, has been placed under French police protection since reporting his disappearance, Agence France-Presse said, citing the interior ministry.
China's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection disclosed the investigation on its website, without specifying the alleged wrongdoing.
Grace Meng believes her husband to be in danger, AFP reported, citing a statement to reporters in Lyon, France, on Sunday.
Meng said her husband sent her an image of a knife Sept. 25 before disappearing during a trip to China, which she takes as a way of trying to tell her he was in danger, Associated Press reported. She's received no news from her husband since, and doesn't know what has happened to him, AP said. Interpol is based in Lyon.
While Meng was head of the executive committee that oversees Interpol, the agency is run by Secretary General Juergen Stock.
