Chinese Stories in English
News Translations Published in May 2013
4. Prowling Thieves Caught in the Act
5. Woman with Problems Walks into River
6. Shoplifter Leaves His Scooter Behind
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1. [Front Page]
Beautiful Girl Sets Up "Wine Server" Scam
A beautiful girl took the initiative in a micro-message and asked for a date to meet in a certain bar. She ordered two bottles of ¥480 [≈$77.42] per-bottle imported wine at one time. All of her abnormal actions led Mr. Wei, a handsome 24-year-old, to meet up with the old-style "wine server".
[Page 5]
Beautiful Girl Wants Date to Drink Imported Wine
■ Man Suspects "Wine Server"
■ He Calls Cops, Bar Returns Most of His Money
Reporter Kong Defang, Correspondent Tong Taiming
As Mr. Wei was fooling around with micro-messaging shortly after 1:00 pm on the 23rd, he received a message from a woman he didn't know asking him to add her as a friend.
Mr. Wei noted that her name was "Sweetie", from Nanjing in Jiangsu Province. The picture was of a pretty schoolgirl. He agreed.
In a micro-message, Sweetie told him that her real name was Liu Yan and that she made lamps in Nanjing. She'd come to Liuzhou recently on business. Eventually she asked Mr. Wei what his job was, and he said he was helping relatives in their business. Sweetie immediately made a date for 8:00 to go out and get to know each other.
Mr. Wei went to Butterfly Mountain Road at 8:30. After half an hour, Sweetie arrived with a girlfriend, Lithe.
Sweetie was about 3'9" [sic] and very pretty. She spoke Mandarin with a northern accent. When she met Mr. Wei she walked with him toward the west. They came to a bar, and Sweetie suggested that they go in and sit for a while.
Mr. Wei had no objection and went into the bar with the two beautiful girls. There were people at three or four tables in the bar, so they sat by the door. The three of them chatted for a while, then Sweetie suggested they order some snacks. "I ordered peanuts and sunflower seeds. I asked them if they drank and they said no," Mr. Wei says, "so I ordered orange juice and Pepsis." Shortly after the snacks arrived, a server brought over a bottle of wine called "Helen's Reserve". "I didn't order wine, did I?" Mr. Wei was a little puzzled. "I ordered it," Sweetie said right away. The server took the opportunity to open the bottle and pour some into wineglasses. Mr. Wei really couldn't figure it out. He'd just asked her if she wanted to order a drink and she'd said no, and now she'd ordered a bottle on the QT. But later, when the bill came, he suddenly understood.
"The wine was 480 Yuan, plus the snacks and other drinks, the total was 610." Mr. Wei said that when the server brought the bill, Sweetie's friend got out her wallet like she was going to pay, but Sweetie stopped her: "You think the gentleman can't afford it?" Mr. Wei didn't have enough cash, so he had to but a bold face on it and swipe his bank card.
Bar Refunds Most of the Bill
After he paid, Sweetie immediately grabbed the bill and rolled it into a ball. Her abnormal actions caught Mr. Wei's attention. He asked for the bill back so he could keep it, and Sweetie's expression suddenly changed.
Later, Sweetie suggested that they should move further inside, saying it was too noisy by the door.
When the three moved further in, Mr. Wei noticed that all but a tiny bit of the remaining half bottle of wine they'd had before they changed tables was mysteriously gone. Sweetie poured the remainder into her glass and the server immediately brought over a fresh bottle. Sweetie opened the bottle and started to pour some into her friend's glass. "There's no need to open that, is there?" Mr. Wei stuck out his hand right away to indicate that he hadn't ordered it. "What do you mean? It's already here!" Sweetie immediately became hostile.
By this time Mr. Wei had figured that something wasn't right. He ran over to the bar and protested, "Are you guys working together?" Then he dialed 110 to file a police report. When Sweetie and her friend saw what was happening, they immediately ducked out through the bar's back door and ran away.
Mr. Wei said, "I chased after them right away. I got to a stairway entrance in a block of condos, and there were passages going every which way. There was two of them, and I lost them. Tell me, if they weren't up to something, why would they run?"
Later an officer from the City Government Police Affairs Station hurried to the scene and talked it over with the person in charge at the bar. Since Mr. Wei had no conclusive evidence, the bar denied that the two women had been hired as "wine servers". In the end, however, the bar refunded 500 Yuan to Mr. Wei.
Mr. Wei said he'd heard on the news that there were such things as "wine servers", but this incident was still a very impressive lesson.
He hopes his experience will serve as a warning to residents of the city. When you don't know someone, don't lightly agree to meet with them. And in particular, if you don't start buying things, you can avoid getting conned.
[Fannyi's Comment: Even in Liuzhou, how difficult would it be for the police to track down a beautiful, 3'9" young girl?]
Liuzhou Evening News, 2013-04-27, pp. 1, 5,
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2. Murder of Presiding Judge Occurs in Henan Province
In the early morning hours of May 12, 2013, the former Presiding Judge of the Luyi County Court, Gao Tianfeng, and his daughter were murdered in their home. There have been developments in the case recently. Surprisingly, the crimes were committed by murderers hired by Mr. Gao's son. Preliminary investigation [has found] that the son was attending a certain high school in the city of Luohe and his older sister was helping him with his studies [i.e., she was helping him prepare for the Gaokao college entrance exams – Fannyi]. Because his sister supervised him too strictly, he hired two people he had meet on the internet to murder his father and her.
Two Murderers Caught, Third Still At Large
The deadly crime occurred at about 2:00 a.m. on the 12th. The scene of the crime was Building 15 in the Glorious China development on Building Peace Road in Zhoukou City.
Security surveillance videotape shows two fairly slender young men climbing over a wall and entering Mr. Gao's home at 2:16 a.m. on the 12th. Both the men were wearing hats and each carried a bundle. Later Mr. Gao's neighbor heard strange noises and called the police. After committing the crime, the perpetrators climbed back over the wall and escaped, leaving bloodstains at the scene.
The victim Mr. Gao, 49, was a resident of Xiangcheng City. He previously served as Presiding Judge in the Civil Court of Luyi County and as the Party Secretary, and was currently a member of the Trial Committee of the People's Intermediate Court for Zhoukou City. The other victim was his daughter, about 20 years old.
Two of the 3 suspects are currently under arrest and one is still at large. One of the two in custody is Mr. Gao's son. [The third suspect was caught two days after this story was published – Fannyi.]
Why did he hire murderers to kill his father and his sister? What conflicts led to the occurrence of such a tragedy in this family?
Through a friend, a reporter was able to arrange a meeting to take numerous questions to one of the owners of the Glorious China development, who has a home right beside Mr. Gao's.
The owner said that the people in the community have been discussing the incident continuously for the last couple of days. The community's residents include people engaged in business as well as officials from government departments. The neighborhood is fairly close and some people have a bit of inside information. However, he never had much contact with Mr. Gao and seldom saw him. He knew that Mr. Gao had been the Party Secretary of Zhoukou City, then later had taken the Assistant Department Head Exam and earned a position as Presiding Judge of the Luyi County Court.
Sister Locks Brother in Room to Protect Him
The owner said, "Mr. Gao had two dogs in his house, one a Tibetan mastiff. That evening the dogs howled continuously for a time, and the mastiff was barking especially viciously. The flower pots on the back wall of the development clinked, and I only found out later that it was the sound of the gangsters climbing over the wall. One of the neighbors called the police. I heard the son hired two guys to commit the crime. Their last names are Zhang and Wu, one from Nanjing and the other from the military school in Dengfeng City. One of them hasn't been caught yet. The two that have been arrested might be a master and his disciple. At 2 in the morning on the day of the crime, Mr. Gao's son called two out-of-area phone numbers. That's how the police came to suspect that he'd hired the killers."
The owner said: "There're a lot of kids that age in the development, and I'm not really certain which one was Mr. Gao's son. But the boy stayed at school and didn't come home often. Everyone's trying to figure out the reason. His father was a presiding judge and the family certainly didn't lack material things. And he was a son. We're rather conservative here and especially love sons a bit more dearly. I heard this boy should have been taking the Gaokao exam, so the family was strict with him. His sister was in Luohe City just to study with him. So much pressure on the kid must have something to do with it. At least that's what everybody in the community is saying."
The owner gave one detail: "The worst thing is, I heard that when the murderers were breaking into the home to commit the crime, the sister locked the boy in a room to protect him. You can tell the sister really loved her brother. And another thing is, the security guard for the development is an old guy. He doesn't walk rounds at night. If something happens, security doesn't have the ability to do anything."
According to reports, Mr. Gao's son is named Gao Weicheng. He phoned Wu Qiang and Zhang Kui to come to the home and kill his father and his sister Gao Weiyi (28, unemployed). With the younger Gao pointing the way, Wu and Zhang bundled up cash and other valuables from the home to carry away, to make the scene look like a murder in the course of a burglary and robbery. Zhang and the younger Gao are in penal custody, and Wu is being hunted.
A reporter learned from the Public Relations Section of the Zhoukou City Public Security Bureau that two suspects are currently in custody, one of whom is the victim Mr. Gao's son. A third suspect is still at large. An official in the Section said, "Since one of the suspects has not yet been caught, the case is still under investigation. Questioning of the suspects who have been brought to justice is continuing. At this time we cannot confirm whether Mr. Gao's son hired the killers. When the circumstances of case are developed in more detail, the Bureau will make a public announcement."
[Adapted from] the Zhengzhou Evening News and the Beijing Youth News, [Reporters] Zhang Yudong, Xu Fuying, Zhong Xin and Cui Hongli
Reprinted (with modifications) in Guangxi Workers News, 2013/05/14, p. 24
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3. Lady Meets "Hunk", Gets Savagely Beaten
Face and Body Swollen from Beating, Warned not to Call Cops
Frightened into Shouting for Help
Correspondent Xu Wenqiu, Dispatch to the Evening News
Yesterday afternoon, because of a sincere desire to make friends, a 29-year-old woman from our city went alone to meet a man she'd become acquainted with on the internet. To her surprise she was molested, beaten and injured by the man.
Liuzhou resident Ms. Luo is employed by a company in our city. Because she is no longer young and her family has been pressuring her, she was anxious to find a suitable male friend with whom to discuss marriage.
While chatting on the internet not long ago, she became acquainted with a young man who called himself “Hunk”. During a phone conversation yesterday afternoon, they agreed to meet near West Riverside Road under the Red Light Bridge. After they met at around 3:30 in the afternoon, the young man led Ms. Luo along a small, winding road to a grassy area where no one was around. Without even revealing his true name, he suggested to Ms. Luo that he would like to hook up with her. However, because he did not live up to the conditions that Ms. Luo had previously set with respect to height, appearance, and manner of speaking, his offer met with Ms. Luo’s immediate but tactful refusal. The young man’s humiliation turned to anger and, all of a sudden, he pushed Ms. Luo to the ground and started pawing at her. After he met with strenuous resistance from her, he struck Ms. Luo violently with his fists, causing swelling in her face and other places. Frightened, Ms. Luo at once yelled for help. In a blink concerned citizens ran up to help and the young man only then stopped his violent attack. To prevent Ms. Luo from calling the police, as he was leaving the man even arrogantly threatened, “I’ll be keeping an eye on you. If you dare call the cops, I’ll get you sooner or later!” To prevent the man from following and spying on her, Ms. Luo first got a cab and left the scene, then went right to the May First Police Affairs Kiosk at the entrance to the Five Star Pedestrian Mall to make a report and seek assistance. Officers speedily hurried to the scene upon receiving the report. They searched the area closely several times but for now haven’t yet found the suspect. After the officers made detailed inquiries to understand the situation, they quickly initiated surveillance for the man going by the screen name “Hunk”. At present the investigation is still being actively pursued.
Liuzhou Evening News, 2013-05-04, p. 7
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4. Prowling Thieves Caught in the Act
Private Car Owners Remember: Don't Leave Valuables in Car, Install Car Alarms
Intern An Zi, Correspondent Wang Zhenyong, Dispatch to the Evening News
The last couple of months, officers at the Guizhong Avenue Police Precinct have repeatedly received reports that the windows of cars parked on the street were pried or smashed open to steal things. CDs, cash, cigarettes, alcohol and GPS devices that were inside the cars have been stolen. Because of this, the police increased the number of patrols by undercover officers in unmarked cars and strengthened their rapid response teams in the hope of catching the thieves as soon as possible. Early in the morning on the 8th, a group of thieves who had been prowling the streets to commit crimes was arrested at the scene.
At about 4:00 that morning, when four undercover officers reached High Tech Five Road on patrol, their suspicions were aroused by several shadowy figures. Three young men were looking around in all directions, then sneaked up to a silver [Volkswagen] Polo sedan with a Guangxi G license plate [Laibin City]. The officers immediately turned their car around to block the young men's car and began questioning them. The three said they were from Laibin, not residents of the nearby community, and were in the area looking for a hotel. Presently the officers searched inside the vehicle at the scene and found 2 GPS devices and 5 screwdrivers for prying open vehicles. They thereupon brought the 3 men to the precinct for further investigation.
Preliminary interrogation [revealed that] suspects Mr. Ding, 21, Mr. Huang, 26, and [a second] Mr. Huang, 24, are from Solid Bridge Village in Laibin. Their M.O. was, after "locking in" on a target vehicle, two of them would be on lookout while the third pried open the window. They would change positions when the window was open, with one man standing lookout while the others stole things.
That evening at midnight, the 3 men had set out from Laibin driving a rental car. When they arrived in Liu River County [in Liuzhou], they broke into a Toyota and stole a cell phone, some red wine and other things, then continued on their way to Liuzhou to steal some more. That same night, when they got to High Tech Five Road they noted a lot of cars parked on the street outside a small community. Upon checking them out, they found a Toyota and a Honda that didn't have alarms, making it easy to steal a GPS device from inside using their window-prying method.
At present, the 3 suspects have been transferred to the Punishments Section for further investigation.
Police remind car owners, especially those who park on the street, to take packaged valuables with you when you leave the car. As much as possible, don't attract thieves' attention by leaving things like boxes or bags in the car. Make sure to set the car alarm. Don't give thieves an opportunity to commit a crime.
Liuzhou Evening News, 2013-05-13, p. 8,
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5. Woman with Relationship Problems Walks into River
Two Policemen Enter Water and Pull Her to Shore
Reporter Zheng Kai, Correspondent Ma Wu, Dispatch to Evening News
"Hey, Lady, take it easy! It's dangerous to go in any further!" Yesterday afternoon, on a section of the river near West Dyke Road and the Broad and Elegant Bridge, a woman walked into the river and wouldn't acknowledge the passers-by shouting at her.
The crowd was worried that she was depressed, so someone decided to call the police.
When your reporter reached the scene at 3:00 yesterday afternoon, officers from the West Pool Police Affairs Station, assisted by other officers, had already pulled the woman to the riverbank. One officer said that the woman had been 5 meters away from shore, in water up to her hips, when they arrived in response to the call. She kept walking toward the middle even as officers on the bank tried every possible way to dissuade her. Seeing that the situation was becoming urgent, two of the assisting officers went into the water with a bamboo pole they'd picked up on the bank and pulled her in.
After the woman had calmed down somewhat, your reporter learned that her name is Ms. Yang, age 47. She wanted to die because of relationship problems. She and her husband had come to Liuzhou looking for work. She left the city in 2011 because their oldest son's wife gave birth and needed someone to help out with the baby. About that time she heard her husband had taken a lover, so she hurried back to Liuzhou as soon as her daughter-in-law could get by on her own. Her husband said he would stop seeing his lover but didn't keep his word. On April 16 she saw him with the other woman near Grindstone Road. In a fit of anger she ran up and slapped the woman. Surprisingly, her husband beat and cursed her when they got home.
Yesterday morning she didn't feel well and wanted to see a doctor. Her husband went with her to West Pool Road only after she insisted on taking a bus. After she'd seen the doctor, however, her husband didn't want to go back home with her. Ms. Yang became discouraged when she thought about all the unpleasantness she'd been through this past year. She became temporarily depressed and walked into the river.
(Miss Zhang contributed material for this report and received a 30 Yuan reward [≈$4.84].
Liuzhou Evening News, 2013-04-27, p. 5
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6. Unsuccessful Shoplifter Leaves E-Scooter Behind
Enters Store Wielding Blade, Police Join in Capture
Dispatch from Liuzhou
An electric scooter is left behind after an unsuccessful attempt to shoplift from a small store. Afterwards the unsuccessful shoplifter, a young man, comes to the store again and again creating a disturbance and threatening the store owner with a blade. When the owner calls the police, officers rush to the scene and, together with bystanders, take the troublemaker into custody.
At 8:37 on the evening of May 6th, Mr. Wang, who operates a small store in a certain steel goods market on Aviation Silver Road in Liuzhou, called police claiming that he was being harassed. Ten minutes later, community police from the Silver Mountain Precinct had hurried to the scene with assisting officers. They saw two young men wrangling with Mr. Wang, the man who had called the police. One of the young men had a cleaver in his hand. He was jumping around waiving the cleaver and cursing: "I'll hack you to death if you don't give the scooter back!" When they saw the police, the two young men broke away and ran off. The police shouted and chased after them. The two young men had run 20 meters when they were stopped by two members of the public who had heard the shouting. The officers came up and took them into custody. They frisked them and found a paring knife on one of them.
It turns out that Mr. Wang had been operating the business alone in the store earlier that afternoon. The two young men had ridden up to the store on an electric scooter. One of the men, named A-Hua, entered the store while the other man was outside making a phone call and watching the scooter. A-Hua came in the store and looked around, without really intending to buy anything. He walked around for ten minutes until Mr. Wang turned his back, then picked up a large fastener, went out the door and put it on the scooter. When Mr. Wang saw what was happening, he immediately shouted, "You can't steal my things!" He called the police right away. The manager of the steel market got wind of it and rushed over with a security guard. A-Hua and the other man broke away and ran off, leaving the scooter behind.
When the police arrived, they took away the scooter that A-Hua had left behind.
After running away, A-Hua became more and more dissatisfied. At 8:00 p.m. he and an accomplice, a man named A-Xiong (not his real name), armed with two cleavers, came after Mr. Wang on a scooter. He hollered, "Give me my scooter back or I'll kill your whole family! I'll put you out of business!" Mr. Wang answered, "The police took it back to the precinct. Go ask for it there." When he heard that, A-Hua stood in the doorway cursing, then left in a fit.
Later, A-Hua came back to the store several times with other people, creating a disturbance. Mr. Wang dialed the number for filing police reports. Finally, the scene described above occurred.
A-Hua and the others will be punished by Public Security for visiting a premises to cause trouble while armed with a blade. The details of the case are still under investigation. (Yang Wenkui)
2013-05-08, South China Daily
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1. Beautiful Girl Sets Up "Wine Server" Scam
2. Gaokao Murders: Judge Murdered in Henan
3. Lady Meets "Hunk", Gets Savagely Beaten