Cellmate date: Wealthy ex-Chinese convict splashes out US$201,000 on ‘phantom’ girlfriend who turns out to be former prison buddy

On release from jail, fraudster cellmate dupes fellow prisoner he befriended behind bars into handing over cash to non-existent ‘girlfriend’. Reports of bizarre scam catch the eye of tens of millions of people on mainland social media. — SCMP

A former Chinese convict who splashed out 1.38mil yuan (RM889,292 or US$201,000) on an online girlfriend – who declined to meet him in person – after his release from prison was shocked to find that “she” was his former cellmate.

Reports of the bizarre scam, which took place in Xiangtan County in China’s southern province of Hunan, has sparked the interest of millions on mainland social media.