China Scene: East

Woman milks friend of a small fortune

The procuratorial authority in Zhenjiang, Jiangsu province, has approved the arrest of a woman who defrauded her friend of more than 200,000 yuan ($30,460).

Since 2007, the woman, surnamed Tang, had pretended to be a man, whom her close friend adored from a distance, on the Internet. Her friend, surnamed Zhang, then fell in love with "the man" and they quickly established a relationship. Although they chatted happily online, they never met in person.