Photo: Midi

Nanyang city in Central China's Henan Province had hoped to achieve fame via a rock music festival, but a series of thefts have stolen the spotlight. After false information spread online, some nearby villagers took advantage and stole from music fans. Nanyang police said on Thursday that some theft cases have been solved, with the thieves being detained; and measures have been taken against the rumor spreader.

The Midi Music Festival, one of the biggest outdoor music festivals in China, said in a statement posted on Sina Weibo on Thursday that the rumor spreader, surnamed Chen (who has been apprehended), falsely claimed that the event had ended and the site needed to be cleared, which allowed the nearby villagers to exploit the situation and commit multiple thefts in the camping area.

The local police have received a total of 73 reports, with 65 cases of theft confirmed as of now. Some thieves have been arrested and detained, and a portion of the stolen property has been recovered. The Nanyang police have organized a special group to investigate the matter, and have joined hands with festival organizers to compensate the losses suffered by the music fans, according to the statement.

The exact number of items lost is yet to be confirmed as of press time.

Midi also said it is asking music fans to forward pictures and videos of any thefts to help police locate the culprits.

The four-day festival was held in Huangshan village in Nanyang and concluded on October 2, with nearly 40,000 people participating per day, organizers revealed during a previous interview.

Many music fans wrote on social media that theft was "rampant." They claimed that their wristbands, diaries, cellphones, cash and other items left in the camp were all stolen. Some even found their underwear missing after returning to the camp from the toilet. A netizen even claimed their camping vehicle had been stolen.

When leaving the camping area, several netizens claimed they saw villagers driving tricycles loaded with all sorts of items around the camping area. A music fan surnamed Wang said he found many villagers searching for items in the camping area, and he was told by one villager that they only took those items because "nobody's here."

The Nanyang government apologized on Thursday night, said volunteers and police already retrieved some of the lost items. A total of 79 ID cards, three computers and 17 cellphones have been returned to their owners. The government also dispelled online rumors about the incidents, including one who exaggerated about the thievery.

Government officials from Pushan county, which is responsible for Huangshan village told the media that the thefts were only committed by a few villagers. Most villagers entered because they believed the items were discarded after music festival. The county government is asking villagers to hand out items they stole.

The theft went viral on Chinese social media on Thursday with the hashtag "Midi steal" attracting 22.76 million reads on Sina Weibo as of press time.

A worker surnamed Qiang told the media that this Midi music festival has broken record of participants in history and had a good vibe since the incident.

Since China relaxed its COVID-19 restrictions earlier this year, many small cities are endeavoring to attract tourists via hosting activities such as barbecue feast and music festivals. The Paper published an opinion piece on Wednesday night calling on cities to learn from the Nanyang Midi theft cases, saying that a city's reputation is not decided by its glorious scenes, but by its darkest moments.

Global Times