At least 14 robberies took place within the span of an hour along a 100-metre stretch of pavement in downtown Guangzhou, a woman complained to Guangzhou Daily.

Zheng said she was walking out of a shop on Guanlu Street on Monday at noon when two men grabbed her necklace and fled down a side lane.

While she was calling police on her cellphone, she saw more women fall victim to robbers. "The whole street was in chaos with all the screaming and running," Zheng said.

After collecting their wits, Zheng and four other female victims went to the nearest police station.

Astonishingly, six other people arrived during the half hour they were there, all reporting similar robberies on the same street.

And she learned of three other incidents that had taken place shortly before she was mugged, bringing the total to 14 robberies within an hour, Zheng said.

The street is not very secure due to the many narrow lanes connecting to it, which make it easy for criminals to escape.

Residents in the neighbourhood also said the punishment for such "grab and run" robberies was too lax.

"They sit in jail for a few days, then they're back on street again," said an old man who guards bicycles along the avenue.

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