Two victims of theft who extorted the thief with footage recorded on a surveillance camera have been sentenced to one-year jail terms each, reports New Express News.

Zhang and Luo, who operate a fashion boutique in Guangzhou, suspected Ye, a sales representative, of stealing from them and installed a surveillance camera to track his movements.

Ye was filmed removing bills from their coat pockets and wallets in January 2003.

When confronted with the footage, Ye admitted to having stolen about 1,000 yuan (US$120), but Zhang and Luo forced him to write out a note saying he had taken 80,000 yuan (US$9,640) and promised to pay it back within six months.

Zhang and Luo visited Ye and his family several times afterwards asking for payment. When he was unable to stand the harassment any longer, Ye went to police and told them the whole story.

Zhang and Luo were later convicted of attempted extortion by the Yuexiu District People's Court.

Close