ATM standup with starter pistol

• Source: Global Times
• [16:52 February 25 2010]
• Comments

By Zhu Husheng

Zheng Rong was sentenced to four years in prison and fined 4,000 yuan ($588.24) by the Xuhui District People’s Court yesterday for performing robbery with a starting pistol at a downtown ATM.

At around 8 pm on October 14, Zheng went to an ATM at the China Merchant Bank at Huaihai Middle Road with a starting pistol he bought online. On October 15 at around 2:15 am Zheng covered his face with a hat and began to stalk a man, surnamed Jiang, who was on his way home from his job at a newspaper.

“He thrust the gun against my waist and ordered me to take out 5,000 yuan ($735.29). Then he forced me to get him another 5,000 yuan. Unfortunately, I ended up giving him 9,500 yuan ($1,397),” Jiang told a judge at the court.

After Zheng was arrested, the gun he had used in the robbery was found to be just a starting pistol, not lethal.

“He stole 9,500 yuan in total from a single victim and didn’t actively attempt to return the stolen money, so we gave him a more serious punishment,” the judge added.

Zheng graduated from college more than two years ago. After graduation, he worked for the World Expo 2010 in Shanghai and began buying futures in 2008. Zheng was in debt to the tune of over 200,000 yuan ($29,411.77) and had previously obtained 31 credit cards to pay it off, of course running into larger debt, supposedly driving him to crime.