Busted: man who robbed five-star hotel with toy gun  

男子持玩具枪抢劫五星酒店

男子程某某在东城区某知名五星级酒店内，强迫服务员吃下数片安眠药后拿走房卡，随后持玩具枪及刀具，进入其他客人的房间实施盗窃、抢劫。得手后，他立即乘飞机经泰国逃往马来西亚。记者近日从东城检察院获悉，程某某已被抓获归案，检方以盗窃罪、抢劫罪对其批准逮捕。[查看全文]

(ECNS) – A man who used a toy gun to rob a guest and threaten security guards at a five-star hotel in Beijing has been taken into custody by local authorities, the Beijing Times reported.

The man had fled to Guangzhou on the night of the robbery. He later absconded to Thailand and then to Malaysia, where he was finally seized by local police as he got off a plane.

The 25-year-old man surnamed Cheng checked into a five-star hotel in Beijing's Xicheng district with a fake ID on Dec 17 last year.

Cheng incapacitated a room attendant with tape and sleeping pills, then used stolen keys to enter the rooms of other guests.

Cheng told police that he gave pills to a frightened guest who was having a heart attack, then left with the guest's cash, watch and bankcard. "I just wanted to take his property, not his life," Cheng said.

Cheng later discovered that the guest had given him the wrong code for the bankcard. He returned to the hotel, intending to get the right number, but found that the guest had left.

He then threatened security with a toy gun while attempting to escape from the hotel.

Guo Xiaonian, a lawyer at a Beijing law firm, said robbery with imitation guns isn't listed as "gun robbery," but it is still a factor for consideration by courts.