Beijing, November 14: A Chinese student managed to evade rent by setting up a secret home under the stairs of a mall in Shanghai for half a year. He furnished his hidden space with a tent, a mattress, a table, an ergonomic chair, and a computer. The authorities failed to find out about the mall squatter even though he wandered out daily to charge his electronic devices.
As per the New York Post report, the student’s name has not been revealed to the public. The report added that the unauthorised tenant had been living under the stairs of the mall for months, with the permission of a security guard who knew his situation. He said he needed a peaceful “place to study”. However, his secret home was exposed on October 30 when another security guard found him and arrested him immediately. COVID-19 Outbreak to Take Place Soon? ‘Batwoman’ Virologist of China Says Another Coronavirus Epidemic is Highly Likely.
The man’s reasons for making a shopping centre his home are unknown. This is not a rare occurrence in China, where some people sometimes use malls as living spaces. Some Ikea China customers became famous in 2016 for sleeping on the beds that the furniture store displayed. Beijing branches tried to stop this by banning it. But some shoppers still used the showrooms as their bedrooms, even after the ban. China: Several Crocodiles Spotted Roaming in Streets After Escaping From Crocodile Farm in Flood-Hit Maoming, Massive Operation Launched to Capture Them (See Pics and Video).
The US has also seen such cases. Metro reported that artist Michael Townsend lived in a Rhode Island mall for four years without being caught by security guards. He did this as part of a project on mall life and built an underground bunker in the centre’s parking garage.
(The above story first appeared on Morning Tidings on Nov 14, 2023 07:48 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website morningtidings.com).