Gold dragon clue: Two Chinese ‘gangsta’ burglars busted after wearing stolen jewellery to internet café
PUBLISHED : Wednesday, 28 October, 2015, 3:14pm
UPDATED : Wednesday, 28 October, 2015, 6:24pm
Laura Zhou
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One of the suspects standing beside the motorbike. Police found a large bag of stolen gems in the trunk. Photo: 163.com
Two suspects in a multi-million-yuan (1 million yuan = US$157,000) jewellery shop burglary in southwestern China were caught after wearing the loot at an internet cafe, a local newspaper reported.
Police in Chongqing said the duo, both in their early 20s and surnamed Zhang and Hu, attracted their attention after the café owner phoned to say that men had used fake IDs during a visit late last month, the Chongqing Times reported. Internet cafes in China generally require users to present IDs.
The surveillance video showed Zhang wearing a gold dragon medallion inlaid with jade, while Hu wore a “jail” necklace, though both had been unemployed for a long time, police said.
Police were alerted after the pair used fake IDs to enter the internet cafe. They were found with a large quantity of stolen gems, some of which they wore around their necks. Photo: 163.com
During a preliminary investigation, Zhang refused to reveal where the jewels came from, until police found more gems and gold in the trunk of Hu’s motorbike.
Hu confessed that he burgled a jewellery store in Chengdu, in neighbouring Sichuan province in March and had taken many gold, silver and jade ornaments.
He then travelled to Chongqing the next day, where he sold some of the loot. After meeting Zhang at an Internet cafe, the two became good friends and Hu gave some of the jewels to Zhang as gifts.
The two also confessed to police that they were planning another burglary in the city.
The case is under further investigation.
