A Nanning resident surnamed Chen was surprised to receive a letter of apology this weekend from a thief who had stolen her solar-powered water heater.

The envelope also contained 50 yuan ($6.4). Chen's water heater, which had been on the roof of her apartment, had been stolen the week before in this capital city of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

Chen said the thief might have had a guilty conscience.

(Nanguo Morning Post)