HANOI: A Vietnamese man in the southern province of Binh Duong robbed a jewellery shop but instead of running away with his loot, he threw the jewellery on the road and waited for the police.
In the strange incident that happened on Tuesday night in the town of Di An, the 28-year-old man rushed into the jewellery shop on a busy street and smashed the glass shelves before scooping up the jewellery.
According to local media reports, he then rushed out of the shop and did the most unexpected thing. He threw the jewellery onto the street and some people rushed to take it.
He then sat down in front of the jewellery shop, apparently waiting for the police to arrest him.
The shop owner and by-standers then held him until the police arrived and detained him.
According to the Vn Express, Di An police said on Thursday that they were investigating him for "property appropriation."
They said the suspect had admitted to robbing the jewellery shop but told them that he suffered from depression and had even wanted to commit suicide.
He reportedly told the police that when he passed by the shop on Tuesday night, he thought of going to jail and it prompted him to commit the crime.
The Vn Express report said police were still looking into his testimony and were yet to decide whether to charge him.
The shop's owner said the man had thrown 18 rings worth VND57 million (US$2,400) on the street but only eight have been retrieved so far.
In a strikingly similar incident on July 31, prison officer Ngo Van Quoc robbed two jewellery shops in central Thua Thien-Hue province using an AK-47 machine gun.
Quoc had also thrown the jewellery items on the street , sparking a rush by the public for the gold items.
According to the Vn Express, eyewitnesses said when he threw them onto the street, he shouted "gold for the poor".
The incident happened at the Dong Ba Market in Hue City, and he had threatened the staff with the machine gun and then shot the glass shelves of the shops before scooping up the jewellery items.
He took about 10 minutes to scoop the jewellery, walked out of the shops and then unexpectedly threw them on the street.
Police said he then walked along a busy road with the gun and phoned his family. After being cornered by the police, he surrendered.
Police have urged the public to return the jewellery that they collected from the street and were looking at CCTV footage from the market to identify the gold pickers. Many of the gold items were returned but it is not clear how much was recovered from the public.