Member Article

Honour among phone thieves

I like to think that if my mobile phone was stolen, the thief would be kind enough to let me keep my SIM card – it’s of little use to them, but invaluable to me. It turns out that a woman in China has managed to persuade the man who stole her phone to return it in its entirety, along with £300 in cash.

Pan Aiying was riding her bicycle when a motorcycle rider snatched her bag containing her mobile phone, bank cards and the cash. The schoolteacher decided to try to persuade the thief to return her belongings instead of going to the police, Reuters reports. She used a friend’s phone to text 21 messages of forgiveness and compassion to the thief. The following morning Pan found her bag in the courtyard of her home and found nothing had been taken. The thief left a letter with the bag, saying: “Dear Pan: I’m sorry. I made a mistake. Please forgive me. You are so tolerant even though I stole from you. I’ll correct my ways and be an upright person.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .