Yesterday, 32 suspects were escorted to the press conference site, while one person is still under review. This report was photographed by our reporter, Zhao Bin.
Suspects were captured by the police - photographed by our reporter, Zhao Bin.
A group of pickpockets roaming nationwide have been frequently committing crimes on buses in Xi'an recently - using surgical scissors to cut and steal gold necklaces from female passengers. On the 18th, the Xi'an bus police decisively acted and dismantled this gang, capturing a total of 33 individuals involved in the cases.
How can you prevent theft while riding the bus, and how can citizens identify pickpockets by their appearance? The police will give you a detailed explanation.
In the instant when people are crowding to get on the bus, a group of thieves "sandwich" passengers: those in front block the entrance for boarding, while those at the back use surgical scissors to cut off the gold necklaces of female passengers. On the 18th, the Xi'an bus police cracked down on a roaming pickpocket gang, arresting 33 criminal suspects. It is understood that this is the largest-scale case involving the most people since the establishment of the bus police division.
While crowding onto the bus, a woman's gold necklace was cut off.
Since June this year, there have been multiple cases in Xi'an where female passengers had their gold necklaces stolen while taking the bus. By early July, over ten such cases of necklace thefts from female passengers had occurred.
The situation drew the attention of Wang Xien and other leaders of the Xi'an Public Security Bureau Bus Division, who formed a special task force consisting of 90 officers.
According to the accounts of 13 victimized women, all incidents of losing valuable necklaces happened while crowding at the bus door. After boarding the bus, they realized their gold necklaces were missing. The police analyzed that this might be a group operation with skilled and swift actions.
Public security information platform data showed that the suspects might be from Chongqing's Changshou District, specializing in cutting and stealing gold necklaces on buses. This information was confirmed by the Chongqing police.
The suspects were about to escape, having already purchased train tickets.
Based on the victims' descriptions, the police identified three high-risk locations: Zhonglou Roundabout area, Mingde Gate, and Friendship East Road. The special task force dispatched three groups of police officers to stake out these areas.
The police learned that recently, a man named Zuo Shengqiang (phonetic) often registered two rooms in several hotels in Xi'an, staying for two or three days before disappearing automatically. Upon investigation, on July 17, the police discovered two hideouts of the thieves: a hotel on Xiyi Road and a hotel at Mingde Gate. The police also learned that on the same day, someone had bought 10 train tickets through a ticket scalper at the train station. According to the scalper, these people would take the train to Chongqing on the afternoon of the 19th. At around 3 PM on the 18th, the director of the division, Wang Xien, instructed that it was time to act, and seize the opportunity to catch the thieves before they left Xi'an.
In a timely action, 33 suspects were caught.
At a hotel on Xiyi Road, the police intercepted five criminal suspects. At a hotel in Mingde Gate, the police received intelligence that there were eight people in the room, but when seven police officers rushed in, they found more than eight people inside. The Political Instructor of the Criminal Investigation Team, Liu Gang, quickly came up with an idea and shouted, "No wonder someone reported that there's a pyramid scheme here, with so many people..." Supportive police arrived in time, taking 11 people back to the division. Inside the room, the police found four cut gold necklaces, four gold bracelets, and surgical scissors used for the crime.
Based on the information received on seized mobile phones, the police quickly went to the Weiyang Toll Station on the Ring Expressway, catching 11 criminal suspects on a bus traveling from Taiyuan to Chongqing. Based on confessions, at a hotel on Friendship East Road, the police arrested six more people and confiscated an electronic scale used for weighing gold necklaces. By 6 PM on the 18th, a total of 33 criminal suspects were arrested.
Last night, more than 30 of them were criminally detained. The case is currently being further investigated.
Inside Information:
Two People Studied Under Masters to Learn Their Craft
After an overnight review on the evening of the 18th, the police clarified the names and addresses of the 33 individuals and fed the information back to the Chongqing police. Subsequently, the Chongqing police indicated that among these people, 11 had been dealt with by the local police, and some were fugitives. They generally commit crimes while roaming and leave footprints across the country.
Among them, Luo Cheng, 41, and Li Yuanhong, 40, are considered "grandmasters" of the pickpocket trade in Chongqing. In their early years, these two studied the craft of stealing gold necklaces in Fuzhou.
Not many among these people truly understand the thievery techniques; most just crowd in front of female passengers during the theft as a "support act." Additionally, during the theft, two people hold the gold necklace to avoid any sound if it falls.
The Scissors Wrapped in Cloth Are Suspects' Homemade "Silencers"
On the surgical scissors confiscated by the police, cloth strips were wrapped around them. The suspects confessed that this was a "silencer" designed to make no sound during the crime.
Two Women Holding Children Less Than Two Years Old
Among the 33 individuals, 11 admitted to cutting gold necklaces in Xi'an, while another 8 remained tight-lipped. However, the evidence held by the police directly pointed to their criminal acts. These people actually belong to three small gangs, including five women who accompanied their husbands in committing crimes. Among these women, two were each holding a child less than two years old. The gold necklaces stolen by this group of thieves would be periodically purchased by a designated person and transported elsewhere for fencing. As for the amount involved in these thefts and the places they have committed crimes, further verification is needed.
Beware of Seven Common Pickpocket Tricks
The police analyzed the common tricks used by pickpockets and reminded citizens to be vigilant.
■ Crowding at the Bus Door (Pretending to Help Board)
When the bus stops, the pickpocket pushes hard towards the bus door but never gets on, looking around everywhere and touching things randomly, waiting for an opportunity to steal.
【Prevention Tip】When boarding the bus, pay close attention to your money and belongings at crowded bus doors to prevent pickpockets from taking advantage of the chaos.
■ Close-Range Pickpocketing
Pickpockets first look for targets at the bus stop, then closely follow them onto the bus, seizing the opportunity once the target lets down their guard.
【Prevention Tip】When carrying a bag on the bus, zip it up and try to keep the zipped side close to your body. Don't carry bags or backpacks behind you.
■ Using Distractions to Cover Pickpocketing
Pickpockets often go to great lengths to cover their actions, using arms, newspapers, umbrellas, plastic bags, or even children to block passengers' views.
【Prevention Tip】Passengers should not be distracted by nearby newspapers or magazines and should pay attention to any unusual activities around them.
■ Gang Operations and Transferring Stolen Goods
Using a gang of two or more people, one usually steals and then transfers the goods to an accomplice.
【Prevention Tip】If a passenger notices their belongings have been stolen, they should immediately ask the driver to close the doors to prevent the criminals from escaping and report the incident to the police.
■ Stealing While Passengers Doze Off
On buses with long distances between stops and fewer passengers, pickpockets sit beside or behind passengers, stealing when they fall asleep or are not paying attention.
【Prevention Tip】Don't doze off on the bus, especially on suburban routes, where vigilance should not be relaxed.
■ Distracting by Grabbing Feet
Pickpockets distract passengers by grabbing their feet or pretending to faint suddenly in front of them, allowing accomplices behind or beside them to steal.
【Prevention Tip】After boarding the bus, passengers should pay special attention to people behind or beside them when dealing with sudden situations, and move away if anything seems unusual.
■ Cutting Necklaces
Pickpockets take advantage of the crowded bus environment, using scissors to cut necklaces when passengers are not paying attention. An accomplice may catch the necklace or one person cuts and catches it with both hands.
【Prevention Tip】After boarding the bus, passengers should always be aware of the actions of people around them in crowded compartments and pay extra attention to exposed valuables.
Identify Six Types of Thieves
Generally speaking, pickpockets share similar physical characteristics. The Xi'an Bus Police Division provided specific features of these people, hoping that citizens can be cautious and "judge people by their appearance."
■ First Feature: Strange Head Wounds
A significant portion of theft suspects have prior convictions and histories of self-harm, resulting in noticeable scars on their heads, often long and extending from back to front, sometimes arranged in parallel lines.
■ Second Feature: Abnormal Dressing
Some pickpockets consume drugs, with injection users having many needle marks on their arms. These people do not wear short sleeves, even in summer, keeping their shirt sleeves tightly buttoned. Some wear hats regardless of the season to cover head injuries.
■ Third Feature: Unusual Eye Contact
Their eyes always chase after passengers' shoulder bags or cellphones at their waists. Once they lock onto a target, they stick close to it. At this point, their eyes seem aimless at a glance, but upon closer observation, they are using peripheral vision to monitor the surroundings, which is exactly when they commit their crimes.
■ Fourth Feature: Disease-Like Appearance
Some people engage in other bad habits besides pickpocketing, such as drug addiction, alcoholism, and gambling. Combined with prolonged high tension and irregular living patterns, many have dark yellow complexions, thin and blackened appearances, resembling those suffering from serious illnesses.
■ Fifth Feature: Moving Back and Forth
Ordinary passengers board at the front door and exit at the back, but pickpockets move with their targets. When they reach the back door and see new targets getting on, they will push forward again.
■ Sixth Feature: "Two Ghosts" Guarding the Door
This mostly happens on minibuses. Two people squeeze together at the door, forcing passengers to push hard through the narrow space between them to get on or off. Regardless of changes in other passengers' positions, these two remain unchanged at the doorway, often buying 50-cent tickets and exiting after three stations. They don't talk to each other on the bus but communicate through eye contact.
All texts in this report were written by our reporter Yang Xiaogang.