A native of Changchun, capital of Jilin Province, reported a wife-missing case to Shanghai police and then was himself arrested, the Shanghai Morning Post reported yesterday.

The man, surnamed Han, claimed that he and his wife, surnamed Qiao, left hometown for Guangzhou to look for jobs in March.

Han became a bartender, but Qiao could not find employment, so she left Guangzhou for Shanghai without saying goodbye on July 4.

On July 7, Han received a phone call from Qiao that proposed a break-up.

Han came to Shanghai and asked police to help find the woman. A man, surnamed Zuo, was involved, he said.

The police quickly tracked down Zuo. However, the investigation showed that Zuo was innocent, as Han and Qiao were not legally married. Furthermore, Han actually was a fugitive in a 100,000 yuan (US$12,000) embezzlement case.