In China, faux homeless iPhone owners busted for begging
Here's a tip for the would-be panhandler: don't flash your new iPhone in public if you're looking for contributions. According to a report by China's Xinhua news agency, a foursome of supposed vagrants was busted by local police in the Chongqing Municipality of China when it was discovered that they all owned iPhones, and were decidedly not poor.
The group, which are being referred to as "professional beggars," have been presenting themselves as destitute migrant workers in various cities around the country, collecting large sums of cash from generous passersby before traveling to a new area to repeat the charade. The team slipped up when some alert citizens were able to snap photos of them counting cash and taking selfies with an iPhone at a Beijing subway station. All four were iPhone owners - one of the beggars even had an iPhone 6 Plus - when they were confronted, and eventually confessed to police.
The fake beggars have even been making life even harder for the actual homeless population, which is now dealing with a distrustful public not comfortable with handing over a donation to an individual who might be faking.
[Photo via Gamma Man]
