China Digest : 1st - 2nd April 2015

[Spetsnaz]

Around the nation: couple bath in famed fountain

Also, man sends naked images of his ex-wife to her father as part of a revenge plot and primary school makes 137,000 yuan payout to student

PUBLISHED : Wednesday, 01 April, 2015, 6:18pm
UPDATED : Wednesday, 01 April, 2015, 6:18pm

A couple drew attention when they wore only their bathing suits while they took a shower in Wuhan's landmark Guanggu Square. Photo: Sina Weibo

HUBEI

Public exhibitionists

Two young people were spotted taking showers in their swimsuits in a fountain in front of Wuhan's landmark Guanggu Square, the Chutian Metropolis Daily reports. Witnesses said the pair were in their early 30s and remained at the scene for about 10 minutes despite the intervention of a nearby security guard. They brought body wash, and left only after a group of security guards were called to the scene to help.

Family homes destroyed

Two families from Wuhan were "mistakenly" forced to evacuate their residences at midnight and witnessed the demolition of their homes, the Chutian Metropolis Daily reports. They told the paper several young men who were armed woke them up at about 3am and forced them to move out. They witnessed their houses being demolished along with their all belongings inside, according to the report.

BEIJING

Takeaway thief

A man from Chaoyang district stole a computer, three laptops, an iPad and 20,000 yuan (HK$25,000) in cash from the apartment of his ex-girlfriend in a fit of jealousy after she married to another man, The Beijing News reports. He was quickly caught by the police after they found he had ordered takeaway using her address right before the theft. The man confessed to stealing the valuables.

Police imposter

Prosecutors from Chaoyang district have arrested a man who posed as police officer and used a false emergency to drive students away from a classroom in order to steal their laptops, The Beijing News reports. Witnesses said the man wore a police uniform and told students to move to a neighbouring classroom because the authorities needed to temporarily occupy the room they were using. The suspect took the laptops the students left behind and fled the scene. He was captured with the help of surveillance cameras.

CHONGQING

Revenge porn fails

A man from Chongqing sent naked images of his ex-wife to her father as part of a revenge plot after he tried unsuccessfully to remarry the woman, news portal Chinanews.com reports. The couple had been married for two decades before they were divorced in 2014 after the man started to gamble. His ex-father-in-law called the police, and asked the man to delete the photos.

Pupil seeks payout

A primary school in Nanchuan has been ordered to pay 137,000 yuan in compensation to a student after he sneaked into the kitchen and fell into a bucket of hot soup, news portal Chinanews.com reports. The student was treated for severe burns in hospital for 124 days. His family took the case to court after the school refused to pay for his medical bills. The court ruled against the school's claim that the student should bare sole responsibility for the accident as he violated regulations and sneaked into the kitchen to steal tomatoes.

GUANGDONG

Son leaps into river 3 times

A 29-year-old man with suicidal tendencies from Guangzhou jumped into a river three times in a single day after the same police failed to rescue him several times, the New Express reports. The man sneaked out from the hospital, and the police eventually called the man's father to take him home. The father said the man recently ran away from home after being yelled at.

Teen foils kidnapper

A court in Guangzhou has jailed a man who attempted to kidnap a 15-year-old boy but failed because he was not strong enough to force the boy into his car, the Guangzhou Daily reports. The court heart the man rented an apartment in a high-end gated community to prey on rich children on their way home. The boy eluded him and called passers-by to help. The man fled the scene but was soon captured. He has been sentenced to three years and six months in prison.

HUNAN

Woman, 22 kills herself

A 22-year-old woman died after burning charcoal in a sealed bathroom at a hotel in Changsha, Xinmin.cn reports. Staff broke into the room after the woman missed her checkout time. She was found dead in the bathroom, which had been sealed with tape from the inside. Her parents said the woman had recently left for Changsha to look for job after leaving university.

150 pigs spill onto road

Over 150 pigs wandering along a busy highway near Binzhou blocked traffic after a truck carrying them rolled on its side on the way to a slaughter-house, the Xiao Xiang Chen Bao reports. The police spent more than an hour transporting the pigs to another truck. The driver said the vehicle suddenly rolled over when he was trying to overtake another car.

SHAANXI

Teacher disciplined pupils

A primary school teacher from Ankang drew criticism online after a photo of her forcing four pupils to kneel on the ground at noon as part of punishment was widely circulated on social media, the Huashang Daily reports. A director admitted the mistake, saying the school had arranged counselling for the four students and would fire the teacher. It is unclear why the students were punished.

Bad luck for bride

A man from Shenmu county stabbed his wife following their wedding after she refused to follow a custom and drink water adulterated with ashes of a talisman, the Huashang Daily reports. The woman was sent to hospital with cuts on her chest, arms and fingers. The man said his mother got the talisman from a fortune teller and it was supposed to bring the couple good luck.

SICHUAN

Sad wife becomes nun

A man from Luzhou who has searched for his missing wife for 16 years sued her for compensation after he learned she had become a nun, news website Lzep.cn reports. The wife ran away from home in the 1990s after the couple argued. Searching for tranquility, she became a nun and asked for a divorce. The man traced her to a temple in late 2014. The court ruled against his request for compensation.

Bears found in taxi

Police from Qingchuan county have found two baby wild black bears in a taxi during a routine check at a toll station, West China City Daily reports. The driver and two passengers have been detained. The police searched the taxi as the trio looked nervous when asked to pull over, and the authorities found the bears in a black box on the seat. The suspects confessed to buying the animals from locals as they wanted to open a black bear breeding centre.

ZHEJIANG

Duck neck chef detained

The owner of a duck neck restaurant in Ningbo has been detained after being discovered to have seasoned the bird with poppy buds, from which opium is made, the Du Shi Kuai Bao reports. The incident came to light after two customers underwent a urine test that yielded positive results. The two were taken were away but claimed to have only eaten duck necks before the test. The police found 1kg poppy shells

Actors must do drug tests

A television drama crew from Suzhou ordered actors to take a drug test before they started filming, news site Thepaper.cn reports. Two supporting actors said on Weibo that it was first time they had taken urine tests before a project. Several films were re-edited last year after members of the crew were caught for drug offences during the anti-drug campaign on the mainland.

 

[Spetsnaz]

Around the nation: tour guides find their loudhailers forbidden in Beijing's Forbidden City

Authorities have tried to cut down on excessive noise inside Beijing's Palace Museum, in the Forbidden City, by introducing a ban on tour guides using loudhailers

PUBLISHED : Thursday, 02 April, 2015, 6:39pm
UPDATED : Thursday, 02 April, 2015, 6:41pm

Andrea Chen [email protected]

The Palace Museum, in Beijing's Forbidden City, has banned tour guides from using loudhailers since the start of the month to help cut down on excessive noise. Photo: Xinhua

BEIJING

Forbidden in the City

The Palace Museum, in the Forbidden City, has banned tour guides from using loudhailers since the start of the month to help cut down on excessive noise, The Mirror reports. The museum has provided lockers at the entrance for guides to store their loudhailers.

'Knife attack' on child

A man in his 60s has gone on trial in Tongzhou district after reportedly attacking the three-year-old grandchild of his neighbour for "making too much noise", The Beijing News reports. The child was not badly hurt and is recovering in hospital. The man told the court he almost had a heart attack when the child kept running around for an hour. When the neighbour refused to stop the child's commotion, he took a kitchen knife upstairs only to "scare" his neighbours, but struck out with the knife after losing his temper, he said.

ANHUI

Fiancé held as body found

A fiancé and his father have been arrested following the discovery of the body of the fiancé's bride-to-be in a bamboo forest near his home, the Anhui Business Herald reports. The woman vanished 10 months ago and the father allegedly confessed to helping his son bury the body after his son strangled her. The parents of the woman, from Liuan, asked police to investigate after she had failed to contact them since July, when the couple were preparing for their wedding.

Deadly argument

A woman from Hefei has gone on trial for negligent homicide after her boyfriend jumped from her car and died while she was driving, the news portal Anhuinews.com reports. The court was told that the man opened the door and jumped out during an argument when she refused to pull over and stop the car. He died from his injuries in hospital. She faces up to seven years in jail if convicted.

FUJIAN

'Drug use due to job woes'

Three delivery men from Fuzhou arrested over possession of illegal drugs, reportedly told the police they started using drugs because of frustration at work, Chinanews.com reports. The men, all in their 30s - detained after a complaint from a roommate - reportedly told police they used drugs bought from a migrant worker because they worked long hours, were underpaid, and had to deal with difficult customers.

Five dogs die in blaze

Five dogs died in a blaze at an animal shelter in Fuzhou that left 200 other animals homeless, the Strait Metropolis Daily reports. Neighbours and volunteers at the centre were able to rescue most of animals when the fire started during the night. Faulty electrical wiring is believed to be the cause.

GUANGGONG

Retailer offered porn films

An electronics store owner from Longmen county, near Huizhou , was given a seven-month suspended jail sentence after she charged a customer 40 yuan (HK$50) for help downloading 41 pornographic films, the Southern Metropolis News reports. The customer confessed after being caught with the films when police checked his phone while carrying out a routine search of residents at a hotel. Police found 985 pornographic films on the retailer's computer.

Student in suicide attempt

A vocational school in Shunde has denied online claims that a pregnant student attempted suicide by jumping from the second-floor classroom after her boyfriend paid her 500 yuan to have an abortion, the Guangzhou Daily reports. The student is in a stable condition in hospital. The school admitted a young woman attempted suicide, but denied it was linked to a pregnancy or having to have an abortion.

HENAN

Toddler given syphilis test

A hospital in Zhengzhou carried out dozens of blood tests on a one-year old child - including one for syphilis - when she was sent there after falling and hitting her head, the Dahe Daily reports. The child was later discharged without having any surgery or a blood transfusion. The hospital said the tests, which cost the family 1,500 yuan, were needed in case she had to have surgery after a brain scan showed she might have internal bleeding. The syphilis test was carried out as a precaution in case the hospital was sued in future should the child develop an infectious disease, it said.

Illegal monkey business

A man from Xuchang is facing trial for illegally trading in an endangered monkey after allegedly buying and rearing a macaque as a pet, the Dahe Daily reports. The 29-year-old was caught after allegedly posting pictures of his pet on social media. He reportedly told police he bought the monkey from an online trader for 11,000 yuan. But it died 10 days later.

JIANGSU

Fatal divorce bid

A man from Suzhou has been detained after allegedly stabbing to death his wife and father-in-law in front of his two sons after she asked him for a divorce, the Modern Express reports. The man and his wife were said to have argued often because he suspected she was cheating on him. When she asked for a divorce he reportedly killed her and her father, then jumped from their second-floor flat in a failed suicide bid.

Fiery grave visit

A family visiting the grave of a relative in Suzhou allegedly fought with security guards after being refused entry to a cemetery to burn joss paper offerings in a metal bucket, news portal People.com.cn reports. The guards said the cemetery had banned the use of fires, but the family claimed the bucket was used only to transport the paper. Two guards and three family members were hurt in the scuffle. Police are investigating.

SICHUAN

Concerns for pregnant girl

A heavily pregnant girl of 15, who doctors say requires a caesarean section, has been unable to find a legal guardian to give her permission for the operation, news portal Newssc.org reports. The girl, from Guangan, lost touch with the child's father after revealing she was pregnant. She has had little contact with her parents since she was eight, when they left her to live with her grandparents.

Inquiry into doctor's death

A hospital in Chengdu has confirmed a surgeon committed suicide because of "pressures", but refused to say if it was linked to an eight-month dispute with a patient, The Beijing News reports. Police are investigating the death of the doctor at his home this week. His patient had reportedly demanded an apology and compensation after suffering complications following gallbladder surgery.

ZHEJIANG

Children win lai see claim

A court in Wenzhou has ordered a mother to return 560,000 yuan of lai see money to her three teenage children, the Qianjiang Evening News reports. The children sued their mother for the return of the money given to them by their grandmother, after she put the funds into her own account without their consent.

Gun enthusiast detained

A gun enthusiast in Ningbo was reportedly detained by police after two cars parked outside a flat had their windows broken by steel pellets fired by a weapon, news portal Zjol.com.cn reports. The man, said to have fired at the cars from his flat, allegedly told police his dream was to be a sharpshooter and that the broken windows were "no big deal" because he could afford to pay the compensation.