Court sees rise in thefts on buses, subway

Jing'an District People's Court has dealt with 56 cases in which pickpockets and other thieves have stolen from passengers on public transportation over the first four months of 2014, the court said Monday.

The figure was up 5.7 percent from the same period last year, according to a press release from the court.

A total of 61 defendants were convicted in the cases, including 56 repeat offenders, the court said.

Among the repeat offenders, 23 had been convicted of theft at least three times in the past.

A 23-year-old Guizhou Province man surnamed Wu was one of two defendants who had been convicted of theft at least five times, the court said. Wu recently appeared in court again on a theft charge.

About 82 percent of the defendants in the theft cases were natives of other parts of China. Most of them are unemployed and poorly educated men. About 70 percent of the defendants were born between the 1950s and the 1970s. The oldest one was 65 years old and the youngest one was 21 years old. About 91 percent of the defendants committed the theft by themselves.

They mostly stole mobile phones and wallets from passengers.

The court reminded residents to keep a close eye on their belongings, especially while taking public transportation.