Lucky License Plate Lands Men in Jail
A Chinese man’s foolhardy attempt to grab a lucky car accessory car has landed him and his minions in jail. The five-men gang had surrounded a license plate vending machine in July last year and fought off other customers as they waited for a ‘lucky’ license plate.
The plate in question contained the numbers ’8888′ and was soon to be dispensed by the machine. Eight is considered a fortune-bringing number in China where the number has been linked to wealth and prosperity.
As for the incident itself, Xu, the brains behind this endeavor, had lined up four cars at the Beijing vehicle registration center in an attempt to nab the auspicious plate.
And, as backup plan, he had also paid four men 10,000 yuan ($1,500) for their help in fending off any other license plate seekers.
The new recruits had embraced the task wholeheartedly as they armed themselves with clubs and knives to drive away people.
All in all, a number of people were hurt when they tried to use the machine.
In the end, the number ’8′ was not lucky for Xu and his gang. They were found guilty in a Beijing court recently where they were fined $8,000 (£5,000) for their actions.
Furthermore, three of the five were also served one-year jail terms.
By shinigami on 04-10-2009
