Category Archives: Heists, Robberies & Escapes in China

Zhou Kehua Case

Zhou Kehua Case: The Complete Story of China’s Most Wanted Serial Killer (2004–2012)

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I. Introduction: The End of a “Vicious Bandit”

At 6:50 a.m. on August 14, 2012, several gunshots shattered the early morning silence in a narrow alley in Wosungou, Tongjiaqiao, Shapingba District, Chongqing. Zhou Kehua, a Grade-A wanted fugitive of the Ministry of Public Security, was shot dead after a close-range exchange of fire with two Chongqing police officers, falling in a street alley not far from his hometown of Jingkou Town. From April 22, 2004, when he first committed armed murder and robbery in Jiangbei District, Chongqing, to August 10, 2012, when he carried out his last bloody crime in Fengmingshan, Shapingba, this vicious bandit—officially reported as “responsible for 10 deaths”—had fled across Chongqing, Hunan, and Jiangsu over eight years, committing 10 armed robbery and murder cases, wounding 6 people, and robbing large amounts of property as well as a Type 81-1 automatic rifle.

His downfall ended eight years of panic spanning multiple cities along the Yangtze River basin and brought closure to this serial case, which had been listed as the “No. 1 Case” in the history of Chinese criminal investigation.

II. Early Trajectory and Pre-Criminal History (1970–2004)

Zhou Kehua was born on February 6, 1970, in Ertang Village, … Read More

The Chang Sheng Case

China’s Largest Maritime Massacre: The 1998 “Chang Sheng” Case and the 23 Crew Members Lost at Sea

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In November 1998, a 10,000-ton freighter quietly disappeared in the South China Sea. Aboard were 23 Chinese crew members, who, to the very end, did not know that they had boarded not an ordinary merchant shipping route, but the endpoint of a carefully planned maritime massacre. The “Chang Sheng” case was later classified as the largest maritime robbery and homicide case since the founding of New China. The cruelty of the case and the tortuous process of its investigation make it an unavoidable page in the history of China’s fight against maritime crime.

I. The Disappeared “Chang Sheng”

The “Chang Sheng” was a Panamanian-flagged bulk carrier with a total deadweight of 16,785 tons and an overall length of 146 meters. It belonged to Hong Kong Huibo Shipping Company, affiliated with Guangzhou Ocean Shipping Company. On November 13, 1998, it set sail from the Baosteel wharf in Shanghai, carrying coal slag bound for Malaysia. Aboard were 23 Chinese expatriate crew members.

Under normal circumstances, it should have arrived at its destination port within a few days. But the “Chang Sheng” did not appear at any port. It lost all contact in the waters near 22 degrees 20 minutes north latitude and … Read More

1997 Changzhou Grocery Store Double Murder Solved After 14 Years

1997 Changzhou Grocery Store Double Murder Solved After 14 Years: How Forensic Sketch and Offender Database Caught the Killer

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On the morning of October 21, 1997, police in Changzhou City, Jiangsu Province, received a report from employees of Yimin Grocery Store that their two night-shift workers had been killed the previous night.

Upon receiving the report, police immediately rushed to the scene. The scene was extremely bloody. The two victims had been struck on the head with a blunt instrument while asleep and killed. A check by store staff revealed that a large quantity of cigarettes had been stolen.

Of the two deceased, one was Zhu Jumei, a retired female employee who had come to the store for the night shift. The other was Xue Chunfeng, a newly hired 20-year-old female sales clerk who lived at the store at night because her home was relatively far from where she worked.

Through crime scene investigation and taking into account the stolen cigarettes from the store, police quickly determined the nature of the case: it was a homicide that had escalated from theft to robbery and murder.

Based on the crime scene investigation and interviews conducted in the surrounding area, police developed a preliminary profile of the perpetrator: a young adult male, approximately 25 years old, financially strapped and in great … Read More

Internet Cafe Addiction Rob and Kill a Grocery Store Owner

Yantai Xingfu Community Murder Case: How Internet Cafe Addiction Led a 24-Year-Old to Rob and Kill a Grocery Store Owner

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There is a Xingfu community in Zhifu District, Yantai City. Twenty-five years ago, the Xingfu No. 12 Village Vegetable Wholesale Market was built here. This vegetable wholesale market is the largest vegetable transfer station in Yantai City. It is bustling every day, and vendors doing business come and go. Along both sides of a main north-south road are some low shops, where the owners do small retail businesses and are all very familiar with one another.

However, two days before Qingming Festival in 2011, the neighbors next to a shop called “Jiaodong One-Yuan Store” found it very strange that the owner, the elderly woman Guo Lanqiu, had not opened for three days. According to the surrounding neighbors, Mrs. Guo Lanqiu had been in this wholesale market the longest. She had been doing business here since the market was built, and she rarely had times when she did not open for business. Even during festivals and holidays, she seldom rested.

The hardworking Mrs. Guo Lanqiu had not been open for three days, which also aroused the curiosity of the surrounding neighbors. The neighbor next door to “Jiaodong One-Yuan Store” decided to go and see what was going on.

When the neighbors … Read More

Harbin Taxi Kidnapping and Gang Rape Case 2

Harbin Taxi Kidnapping and Gang Rape Case Solved: How Eagle Eye Surveillance Helped Police Catch Two Suspects

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On December 30, 2010, the 110 Command Center of the Harbin Public Security Bureau received a request for assistance from the Xi’an police, asking local police to assist in investigating the whereabouts of a young girl named Fangfang, who had gone missing after traveling from Xi’an to Harbin.

At the same time, more and more Harbin citizens learned of this news through television, radio, and various other news media. For a time, the anxious and helpless calls of Fangfang’s family echoed over the ice city. Where on earth had this young girl, only 21 years old, gone?

Just as people were deeply concerned about this girl’s fate, only a few hours later, a young girl suddenly appeared before the police. The police discovered that the girl who came to report the case was Fangfang, the very person they were working hard to find. Her appearance was inspiring.

However, after learning about Fangfang’s experiences over the past few hours, the police, who had originally relaxed, became tense again.

On the last day of 2010, young Fangfang experienced the most painful night of her life, and her tearful account pierced the hearts of all the police officers present.

According to Fangfang’s description, … Read More

Chongqing Anesthetic Robbery 1

Chongqing Anesthetic Robbery and Rape Case: How Police Caught Serial Criminal Tian Changquan After 30+ Drugging Attacks

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On the morning of April 9, 2008, near the Shizitan Dam in Changshou District, Chongqing, in a small grove, people discovered a woman who appeared dazed. This woman was wearing only a top, with her lower body naked, lying on the ground outside a bamboo pavilion by the dam. Someone subsequently reported the case to the police.

Through on-site investigation, the police found that a layer of dead leaves had fallen at the scene, and there were traces of dragging on the dead leaves. Beside the traces, a pair of black women’s trousers, a pair of white underwear, and an empty beverage can were left behind. After testing the residual liquid in the beverage can left at the scene, the police found that the residual liquid contained a drug component scientifically known as triazolam. When the forensic doctor questioned this woman, they found that she was unclear in mind and unable to clearly describe what had happened. No other clues usable for solving the case were found at the scene, which made the police’s investigative work impossible to proceed.
Afterward, several similar cases occurred successively in Chongqing, one of which occurred in Hechuan District, Chongqing.

On April 30, 2009, the … Read More