A
female thief was stripped and publicly humiliated in China after she was caught red-handed.
A crowd ripped off her clothing and wrote, "I am thief" in Chinese characters on her back with a marker.
The incident happened in the city of Taizhou, in east China's Zhejiang province.
An online source said the woman thief was also physically assaulted. She resorted to tying rags around her chest to prevent further exposure.
The mob finally called the police after they thought their punishment was enough.
The incident drew a flurry of comments from netizens.
A netizen said such punishment was common in Taizhou, as the locals there frequently punished thieves with public shaming and physical abuse.
According to the online source, a similar incident happened last year after a thief was stripped to his waist and paraded through the streets.
He also had the word 'thief' written on his body.
The incident also raised the ire of netizens who claimed that the lack of proper police procedures and laws in Taizhou was the cause of these recurring incidents.
One netizen said the law was not effective enough to deter crime. Another said officials did not care about the crimes because they were rarely victims themselves.
