Replacement criminal: 12 years jail for ‘trusted friend’ of Chinese woman who stole US$138,000 in luxury goods from her home and switched them for fakes
- Chinese woman’s 3-year crime spree in which she stole US$138,000 in luxury items from home of ‘trusted friend’ ends in 12- year prison term
- Prosecutors say ‘best pal’ criminal, who replaced the stolen loot with fake top-end items, also misled the police investigation into her crimes
A Chinese woman who stole almost one million yuan-worth of luxury products from her best friend’s house – then tried to cover her tracks by replacing them with fakes – has been jailed for 12 years.
The case has stirred huge interest on mainland social media after a TV station in the northeastern Chinese province of Jilin reported that the thief, surnamed Liu, pilfered high-end goods to the value of 940,000 yuan (US$138,000) from the home of her friend, surnamed Cao, whom she had known for years.
The online media outlet Star Video posted an edited version of the video on Weibo, reporting that the pair had developed a relationship over a period of years in which they could “talk about everything”.
The thieving spree was triggered in 2019 when Cao bought a new house in Changchun, the capital of Jilin province.
As Cao was often away from the provincial capital, she trusted Liu, who was living in the city full-time to help with renovations and gave her a key to the house.