Signs of wealth are magnet for crime

By Feng Yu (Global Times) 08:26, September 03, 2013

Email|Print|Comments

twitter

facebook

Sina Microblog

You could be excused for wondering if there's been an increase in crime in Shanghai giventhat two local courts have issued sentences in kidnapping cases this week. However, it'sjust a coincidence that the courts announced the verdicts in the same week. In fact onecase happened in December last year and the other in February.

In the December case, a man from Anhui Province drugged, kidnapped and murdered awoman and stole 44,300 yuan ($7,238) from the woman's bank accounts. He wassentenced to death on Wednesday. The man said he would appeal.

The man got to know his victim while taking a driving course where they shared a drivingteacher last year.

According to a press officer from the Shanghai No.1 Intermediate People's Court, thedefendant planned the whole thing and the court handed down the death sentence due tothe brutality of the murder, which the court believed to be premeditated.

The man was in financial ruin as his advertising company in Shanghai kept losing money.He asked to borrow money from the woman but she refused him, according to the court.

In the February case, three unemployed men have been sentenced to six years in prisonfor abducting a woman and attempting to ransom her for 3 million yuan.

According to media reports, the three men were gamblers who had been out of work forone to two years. One had a large debt. They waylaid the woman in a shopping mallparking lot in Pudong New Area. The woman had driven a luxury car that day to a gym inthe shopping mall. The three men were not satisfied with the 100,000 yuan offer from abank account the woman claimed to have access to. Instead, they made a phone call to herhusband demanding a ransom of 3 million yuan. The husband reported the situation topolice and the trio were nabbed within nine hours. Luckily the woman was rescued.

Both women in the cases were seen as wealthy, which perhaps explains why they weretargeted.

Does appearing to be rich make you more likely to be targeted by a criminal and how arepotential victims of crime judged to be rich?

I have to mention an incident my colleague encountered this Tuesday that shocked ouroffice. My colleague, a female reporter, was nearly robbed on her way to a bank on WeihaiRoad in Jing'an district around noon. She was carrying an iPhone and a wallet in her handsat the time. A man in his 20s tried to grab the phone and wallet from her. As she did notrelinquish her grip, they both fell on the ground during the confrontation where theycontinued to grapple. The incident occurred on a busy stretch of road where there are twobanks, restaurants and convenience stores nearby. Hearing her cries of protest, severalbystanders including security guards witnessed the incident. But nobody stepped in to helpher. Afterwards, they said that since she only shouted a string of "ahs" and did not cry forhelp or explicitly say that she was being robbed, they assumed it was a lovers' quarrel anddidn't take it seriously.

Luckily, the would-be thief noticed that he had attracted a crowd of onlookers and he fledempty-handed. My colleague escaped without injury or loss of property.

In the two court cases, the fact that both victims were connected to cars seems to be key.In the attempted robbery case, a high-end mobile phone was the likely incentive.

At present, vehicle ownership is still a symbol of wealth in China. Even those who attend adriving course are regarded as rich. They are potential car owners. And in China, thecomparative cost of buying and maintaining a car is higher than in many countries.Although some would argue that an iPhone doesn't represent wealth, to many others,owning a phone worth several thousand yuan means something.

When a man is poor, he has many financial troubles. But when a man is rich, another kindof financial trouble follows. Friends, family members, distant relatives, colleagues, socialorganizations and even strangers may ask for favors. They may take it for granted thatyour wealth should have some relation to them since they have relation to you. Theyignore the hardship you have suffered to become rich. Many rich people in China are afraidto be called selfish and miserly, so smart rich people hide their wealth and may evenpretend to be poor to save further trouble.

When the lottery was first introduced in China, there was a grand ceremony to announceand introduce the lucky winners. But now, everything is quiet. According to previous mediareports, lottery winners were inundated with requests for money from all kinds of peoplebecause of their overnight wealth.

These cases remind us that even those with a modest income are still richer than others.Indeed, most expats are aware that many locals assume they are wealthy simply becausethey come from a developed capitalist country. Shanghai generally feels safer than manybig cities, and indeed, it mostly is. But it's still advisable to protect income and propertyprivacy to avoid potential trouble.

（Editor：GaoYinan、Chen Lidan）