Two people have been arrested in China after a 10-year-old boy, who is suspected of theft, was tied to a telephone pole and flogged by fellow villagers. - PHOTOS: SCREENGRAB FROM BTIMES/DOUYIN, JIE MIAN CHENG SHI HE BEI/DOUYIN via The Straits Times/ANN
BEIJING (The Straits Times/ANN): A woman and her father-in-law have been arrested in China after a 10-year-old boy suspected of theft was tied to a utility pole and flogged by fellow villagers.
In a video on Chinese social networking website Weibo, which has attracted more than 1.89 million views, the child’s back is shown to be covered in many long red marks.
According to Weibo account Btime, or “shi jian shi pin”, the incident in Wuliang village in China’s Guangdong province took place on May 1.
Suspecting that the boy had stolen 650 yuan (S$121), villagers tied him up and hit him with electrical cables.
The boy, whose parents are divorced, is believed to be looked after by his grandfather and has a history of stealing things, according to the video.
He was taken to the hospital by his father and was determined to have suffered minor injuries, it reported.
A woman, who is believed to be among the boy’s attackers, has been detained for 15 days, while her father-in-law has been detained for 10 days.
On Weibo, several users condemned the attackers for punishing the boy without evidence.
Said one user: “They became violent based on suspicions.
“If the child is really at fault, call the police and let the police handle it, the villagers should not have tortured him.” - The Straits Times/ANN
