Two men, Ren Xiaofeng and Ma Xiangjing, devised a seemingly perfect heist a year prior to their actions. With assistance from two security guards, Ren managed to steal 200,000 yuan (approximately $62,000 AUD) from the Agricultural Bank of China. He then bought an extensive number of lottery tickets, hoping that any winnings would allow him to return the stolen sum discreetly. Remarkably, he did win enough to replace the missing money, and the bank was none the wiser.
However, the duo’s ambitions grew as they teamed up for a larger heist and targeted the bank once more, this time stealing approximately $10 million AUD. Unfortunately, their luck was short-lived. In an attempt to recover their losses, they took an additional $5 million and invested most in lottery tickets but only netted $30,000—a far cry from the significant amounts they had stolen.
Their desperate ticket purchases even contributed to a record-breaking lottery week in Hebei province. It wasn’t until two days after their third heist that bank managers noticed the missing funds and alerted the police. Ren and Ma attempted to escape using false identification but were arrested just two days later, having been placed on China’s most wanted list.
Subsequently, both men were charged with embezzlement and faced execution by firing squad within a year of their crimes. Most of the stolen money was never recovered, marking a tragic end to their criminal endeavor.