Neither of Yao's parents was available for an interview Tuesday. A neighbor said they had not be seen near their central Xi'an apartment since the incident.

The neighbor, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Yao's parents were both college educated. His father served in the army and worked at a state company in Xi'an before starting his own business.

The neighbor described Yao as a "talented young man."

"He plays the piano well and teaches children in his spare time -- that's why his parents spent more than 100,000 yuan to buy him a car this year."

Yao's teacher and classmates said he was a good student, but never talked much. "He never stayed at the school dorm, so I know very little of him," said one classmate.

The case has sparked online outrage after police gave details of the accident at a press conference Monday, four days after the local procuratorate issued an arrest warrant.

Chinese netizens almost unanimously demanded the death penalty for Yao.

"It's obviously a case of murder. Mr Judge, please keep your eyes wide open," read a posting on Sina.com.cn, a leading Chinese portal website whose coverage of the case was followed by more than 60,000 postings Tuesday.

Many people speculated that Yao's parents might use their connections to bribe the authorities into letting him off with a lighter offence.

"It could be just the same old story of the rich and powerful doing whatever they want and never feeling guilty about it," said a netizen from the northern Hebei Province, where another outrage occurred the same month.

On that occasion a drunk 22-year-old driver gained nationwide notoriety by shouting "Sue me if you dare, my father is Li Gang," after hitting two students, killing one and injuring the other, on the campus of Hebei University in mid October.

Li Gang was deputy chief of the public security bureau in Baoding city's Beishi district, where the university is located.

"My father is Li Gang" became infamous as a catch phrase, which netizens worked into classical poetry, jokes and doggerel to vent their fury over the vicious words and behavior of the privileged and the children of power and wealth.

The driver, Li Qiming, has been charged with fleeing the scene of an accident, but the case has yet to go to court.

The widespread attention to the two cases reflected a public demand for justice and fairness, as well as worries over a "retreat of morality" amid China's economic boom, said a noted sociologist in Xi'an.

"Yao's extreme selfishness and apathy should be taken as an alarm for Chinese society, particularly for those that enjoy material abundance," said Shi Ying, deputy president of Shaanxi Provincial Academy of Social Sciences.

Shi warned that parents, teachers and the whole of society should reconsider the value systems they were helping the younger generation to cultivate. "Nowadays many youngsters believe fame and money are the major criteria for success, without learning to cherish life and respect others."