Tuesday, June 02, 2009

Chinese Book Thief Really, Really Likes to Read

From ChinaDaily comes a story about a man who loves books more than anything else in the world. I hope Chinese authorities cut the guy a little slack.
A man who was arrested for trying to steal books in Chongqing municipality confessed on Monday that he stole 1,565 books in the last three years.

Surnamed Liu, he said he felt his crime was just a bad habit but the hobby costs several bookstores 37,000 yuan ($5,417) in losses.

After guards stopped him on Monday, he told police he wanted to read them, not to sell them.

"I have no money but like reading very much, so I stole the books," Liu said.
Good luck, Mr. Liu. I suspect you're going to need it.

4 comments:

  1. He's *stealing* 10+ books a week for years and wants to pass it off as a harmless little bad habit? Are we sure he's not American?

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  2. He WAS a pretty ambitious thief, wasn't he, Mella? :-)

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  3. Suzy, my concern is the Chinese prison system and the extreme penalties the country imposes on its criminals. I don't find it too far fetched to think that this man is in very, very serious trouble.

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