Robberies on highways are often heard of, but what if the highway itself was stolen? No, we aren't kidding, this happened! A thief in China reportedly stole an 800-metre-long concrete road overnight and even sold the blocks to a factory.
Residents of a village in Sankeshu, Jiangsu province, reported the matter to the police on January 24, and said that a stretch of the road has gone missing, China News Service reported, according to the Agence France-Presse. Some even believed that the road was being renovated, but no one had any clue to where the concrete had vanished overnight.
However, turns out that a man named Zhu had broken down the road with the help of a hired digger and the concrete had then been loaded onto trucks and sold to a stone materials factory. While anyone would wonder what the logic was behind the decision, Zhu seemed pretty unabashed about what he had done and said that it looked like a "good business opportunity."
He even explained to the police that authorities had built another road nearby which was more frequently used, due to which this one was lying unused. "No one was taking the road. Why don't I dig it up and I can sell the cement pieces for some money," he added.
Zhu also revealed that he was in need of money and this was a good source of income. He sold about 500 tonnes of concrete for 5,000 yuan, which is about $795.
Meanwhile, China seems to be losing quite a few roads of late. A few days ago, the nation introduced the "world's first" solar panel-paved highway. However, officials found several solar panels missing about five days later and suspect that it was stolen. The police said that the road had been missing panels and a 6-inch wide and 6 feet long cut was noticed, reported Tech Crunch.
These panels have been replaced and authorities are now investigating the matter.
