THE theft of a computer from a building in Hengkenghe East Village in Guanlan Subdistrict, Bao an District, has forced more than 50 tenants to move out.
The tenants were asked to move out in two days to protect the crime scene in the police investigation, according to a police note issued March 30, Shenzhen Evening News reported yesterday.
A tenant living on the eighth floor of Building No. 389 lost a laptop computer March 29.
The eviction order was widely opposed by other tenants who felt it was unjustified.
Wei, who had lived in the building for two years, said he did not understand why they had to move. We are all assisting in the investigation and police have already taken statements from every male tenant in the building.
Police said we were required to move because of the seriousness of the case but I don t think the loss of a computer worth about 5,000 yuan (US$764) should lead to this, said Yi, another tenant.
Building No. 389 has 11 floors and an elevator and is one of the more luxurious apartment complexes in the area.
Yi said a mere theft was not proof that the building was too dangerous to live in. She had checked other buildings in the village but felt safer living where she was.
An unidentified police officer told the tenants Tuesday the building would be locked down the next day and nothing was allowed to be moved during the lock-down.
The computer theft is a criminal matter and the eviction order is for tenants safety.
The officer also said the building failed to meet firefighting standards and the building s owner had never replied to a police rectification order.
It is not legal to ask so many tenants to move just because of a computer theft, said Shi Ganzhang, a lawyer from Guangdong Guanghe Law Firm.
(Tina Chen)
