By Bernama
Hanghou : A woman named Li Yangliu was given 10 years in prison for buying 688 bullets from thieves in eastern China’s Zhejiang Province, China’s Xinhua news agency quoted officials as saying here on Friday.
The 37-year-old ran a salvage station with her husband, Chen De, in Wencheng Town. Li paid 460 yuan (about US$64.8) for the bullets as a bag of waste brass that had been stolen by two thieves, Lu Ping and Luo Hu, officials said.
The two stole the bag of brass from a home in Wenzhou City in Zhejiang in September.
The brass turned out to be bullets when Lu and Luo dumped them out at Li’s salvage station. Li bought them as she thought the material was of value, according to local officials.
When her husband learned of the transaction the next day, he told her that purchasing bullets was illegal. Li later threw them into a river, officials said.
Li’s purchase was later discovered by police when Lu and Luo confessed during questioning.
The local court considered Li to have purchased bullets illegally.
The case of Lu and Luo was still under investigation, officials said.