District court witnesses 28% jump in thefts

Jing'an District People's Court dealt with 28 percent more theft cases in the first two months of 2014 than it did during the same period last year, the court said Monday.

The court handled 120 criminal cases in January and February this year, most of which were for theft, according to a court press release. The court did not disclose the exact number of theft cases.

The court also saw an increase in the number of women charged with theft. Women accounted for about 16 percent of all criminal defendants tried during the two-month period.

About 86 percent of the female thieves targeted women at shopping malls and department stores on Nanjing Road West in Jing'an district, such as Marks & Spencer and the Réel Shanghai Department Store.

In one case, a Guizhou province woman surnamed Zhou was sentenced to six months in jail for stealing mobile phones at the Réel Shanghai Department Store from July to September, the court said.

About 67 percent of the female defendants in theft cases were natives of other parts of China. The court said most of the thieves are unemployed and poorly educated.

Most of the female defendants were repeat offenders.

A 43-year-old Hunan province woman with multiple theft convictions was caught planning another theft in August 2013.

Most of the female defendants went after expensive items. One got caught stealing five pairs of shoes worth 3,445 yuan ($561) from Marks & Spencer at the end of 2013.

Around the same time, a couple was caught stealing 1,268 yuan worth of food including bacon, canned fish and candy, from a market at the Jiuguang Department Store.