A young man from Hunan Province has put together a small "thieves museum" in a single-room apartment in Bao'an District, hoping to sell his idea for at least 20 million RMB (2.94 million USD).
Tang Bufeng, 30, built the museum in his 30-square-meter apartment in a residential building in Shajing Subdistrict. The museum features many pictures and articles related to thievery and tools commonly used for stealing, the Shenzhen Evening News reported.
Most of the tools were donated by a man from Nanshan District, identified as Lao Mai, a self-professed expert in theft prevention and thief-catching, Tang said.
"We can learn more about thieves, including their methods, thoughts and tools, to help protect ourselves from theft. The museum teaches people these things and will hopefully help in the development of a 'thief-proof industry,'" said Tang.
Tang thought that the museum was a good cultural marketing idea and hoped that the concept could be sold for more than 20 million RMB. "My idea came from a successful case in Hunan a long time ago, in which the owner of a solar company opened a museum featuring collections of solar products and technology. This attracted many customers and investors," he said.
Although Tang's museum has not opened officially, many residents in nearby communities have already visited the museum.
Some visitors thought it was a great idea to teach people how thieves committed crime so potential victims could be better prepared. "I was very impressed by the museum. I learnt that some thieves used a secret language of markings, so I can now tell whether my home has been targeted by thieves beforehand and I have done some prevention work," said one visitor, Meng.
But some thought that the information provided was dangerous, as it could teach people how to steal. "If a person wanted to steal and did not know how, he could come here and gain the knowledge quickly. It's very convenient, like a thief training base," said an unidentified resident.
Police from Shajing Police Station said they thought that the information should be updated regularly as thieves were constantly improving their skills and methods, but building a museum was not the most effective way to prevent stealing.
(By Wang Yuanyuan)
