Two "Spidermen" Burgled by Climbing Walls
In two years, they committed over 20 burglaries with a total value of more than 4 million yuan, and one of them spent over 1 million yuan of the stolen money on online games.
Report by our correspondent Xu Dahuai and communicated by Wang Jiayong (text) and journalist Chen Jing (photos): Two men came to Fuzhou and specifically targeted high-rise duplex apartments for theft. They usually entered the community rooftop and then climbed down the water pipes into the duplex apartments. Their method could be described as "flying over walls." In over two years, the two men committed more than 20 burglaries with a total value of 4 million yuan, including stealing goods worth 1 million yuan in one case last month and cash up to 400,000 yuan in another instance. One of them used nearly 2 million yuan he received from the loot to spend over 1 million yuan on online games. Yesterday, the two men were criminally detained.
At 9:30 PM on the evening of September 15th, when Mr. Zhuang living in the top-floor duplex apartment at Hai Run Bin Jiang residential area in Taijiang District opened his door, he was immediately shocked by what he saw: his home was in disarray, the safe had been opened, 3,000 yuan RMB and 15,000 US dollars in cash had been stolen, and watches, jade articles, and other valuables had disappeared. The total loss amounted to 1 million yuan RMB.
There was no damage to the windows or doors, so how did the thief get in? After investigation, it was found that at four o'clock in the afternoon, the two suspects had scouted the location and went to the rooftop of Building 24 in the community. At around seven o’clock in the evening, seeing that there was no light in Mr. Zhuang's house, the two suspects rushed over.
Blocked by an iron gate downstairs, the two men entered the underground garage of the community, took the elevator from the garage to the rooftop, and then climbed through the water pipes onto Mr. Zhuang’s balcony.
After entering the room, the two men searched and found the keys to the safe Mr. Zhuang kept at home. They stole goods worth over 1 million yuan from inside the safe.
Given the significant amount involved in the case, the Taijiang Criminal Investigation Brigade immediately launched an investigation after receiving the alarm. Through the shopping bag carried by the suspects, the police successfully identified the two suspects. On October 30th, the police arrested suspect Tang in Jinan District and seized over 80 pieces of stolen gold jewelry, more than 20 commemorative coins, 11 pieces of jade and Shoushan stone, mobile phones, cameras, luxury watches, and a large number of stolen items. On November 1st, the police traveled to Yugan County, Jiangxi Province, and captured the other suspect Zhang.
Upon investigation, it was found that Tang is 28 years old and from Chongqing; Zhang is 22 years old and from Jiangxi, where he previously worked in aluminum alloy window decoration involving high-altitude work. In August 2008, after coming to Fuzhou, the two men decided to target the top-floor duplex apartments in communities to "get rich quickly." They believed, "the people living there are all wealthy." They generally chose to act when no one was home, between two and three in the afternoon.
Having been in Fuzhou for over two years, the two men committed over 20 burglaries in the urban area of Fuzhou, stealing nearly 4 million yuan worth of goods. All their targets were top-floor duplex apartments in communities, and their method was always the same: climbing down the water pipes from the rooftop to enter the owners' balconies. Among these over 20 burglary cases, in one duplex apartment in Jin’an Jinxiu Fu Cheng last year, the two men stole 400,000 yuan in cash, and the Zhuang family case in Hai Run Bin Jiang community was the most "profitable" for them.
It was learned that after splitting the stolen money and goods equally, each man received nearly 2 million yuan. Investigations revealed that Zhang took the money back to his hometown and built two three-story small villas. Meanwhile, Tang, who was addicted to online games, lent 250,000 yuan to a friend, and spent the rest of the over 1 million yuan mostly on playing online games, using over 1 million yuan on "buying equipment" and "upgrading."
Yesterday, the two men were criminally detained. The case is currently under further review.
Police Reminder:
Do Not Let Safes Become Just Decorations
The police discovered that some external conditions inadvertently created opportunities for the two men to commit burglaries. It was found that most owners of the burgled duplex apartments hoped for a broad view and fresh air, so they did not install anti-theft nets. Furthermore, all the safes had initial passwords of 1234, and most owners also kept the keys at home. Once thieves broke in, they could easily open the safes and steal.
Additionally, during the investigation, the police found that although many high-end communities require inputting a password to enter through the iron gates, elevators from the garages can directly access various floors, giving criminals opportunities. "In Xingsheng Mingzhu Community in Gulou District, different passwords are required to take the elevator from the garage to different floors. This practice is worth learning from," said the police officer.