

An Italian expat based in Shanghai said that 220,000 RMB went missing from his bank account last Thursday, according to Yangcheng Evening News.

The expat, identified as Rafel, realized the money had gone missing when he lent his debit card to his wife, who used it to go shopping in their Shanghai neighborhood. When she went to withdraw money, she was shocked to find that there was only 361 RMB available.

The account was used mainly for Rafael’s Guangzhou-based auto parts business, which he’d been operating for more than six years.

Six hours after filing a report, Shanghai police told Rafael that they could’t help him and that he’d need to contact Guangzhou police, as that’s where the bank was located.

The bank sent him a printout of transactions which included a mysterious 220,000 RMB transaction with a bathroom supply shop called “New Lily”.

Rafael said that he spoke to a friend and discovered that she’d had a similar experience a few years ago.

“I have done business in a lot of countries, but have never heard of this kind of crime. I have many friends doing business in China, we all have Chinese bank accounts, use Chinese debt cards, and we never realized our money is at risk. How can we get our trust back?”

[h/t Lost Laowai]



