Chinese ‘Trojan Horse’ robbers sneak into apartment block hidden in crates before midnight raid on home of wealthy couple
Three robbers used their own variation of the Trojan Horse – hiding in wooden crates that were delivered to an apartment block to bypass security – before climbing out at midnight to break into a wealthy couple’s home, mainland media reports.
Two suspects hid inside the crates before robbing the couple after forcing them to swallow sleeping tablets in May in Meishan, in Sichuan province, the Chengdu Economic Daily reported.
The two men were later filmed on a surveillance cameras taking the woman with them after the robbery as they drove away in victim’s Audi car, which they later abandoned near a lake, the report said.
Police inquiries led them to quickly identify the two suspects in the video, plus a third person, and the next day the wife was rescued and all three suspects were arrested, the report said.
The third suspect – mastermind behind the robbery, identified by his surname Tong – is a painter and decorator, who reportedly told police he had decided to rob the wealthy couple after hearing about them from friends earlier this year.
Tong is divorced with two children, and told police he suffered from diabetes and needed money to pay off his medical bills.
He claimed he had never read about the Trojan Horse – a story from Greek mythology about Greek soldiers sneaking into their enemies’ city of Troy, hidden inside a wooden horse – but came up with the idea of hiding in crates after he saw removal men easily bypassing security when making deliveries.
Tong’s nephew and his colleague hid inside the two wooden crates, taking with them food and water, and then hired a shipping company to deliver them inside the apartment block one afternoon.
That night the two then opened their boxes and then broke into the couple’s apartment.
The trio were likely to face charges of robbery soon, the report said.
