A netizen disclosed on the popular Chinese forum that a beggar in Beijing's commercial center Xidan was actually a millionaire who owns several properties and four cars, causing a sensation on the Internet.
Other netizens replied on the post that they saw this beggar many times with his frantic way of begging - kneeling on the ground and continuously kowtowing to get people's sympathy and money while an old woman who appears to be seriously ill lies beside him.
The fraud was also found at Dongsishitiao Subway Station in Beijing. A netizen named Budangxiaobing said an old woman with gray hair was lying on the ground with a boy kowtowing, then suddenly jumped up and ran away because chengguan, or urban management officers, were coming.
The chengguan in charge of Xidan area said the man was found begging on the street several times and he was persuaded to leave. But later he kept evading the officers, escaping every time the chengguan patrols got close.
"We don't know how much he earns, and we have no legal jurisdiction to fine him either," said an officer from Xidan's urban management department.
The post, attracting 100,000 hits, said the man could earn up to 4,000 yuan per hour, but that amount was highly suspect.
The beggars fled in haste when they found themselves being recorded. And to everyone's surprise, the woman lying on the ground actually walked like a normal person, according to the video uploaded to Ku6.com.
