Shanghai woman buys 2nd-hand designer bag online, finds out it was same one stolen from her home a year ago

In Shanghai, a woman named Li purchased a limited edition designer bag from an online second-hand marketplace. To her astonishment, the bag she had recently bought was the same one that had been stolen from her residence a year ago. Li approached the Hongmei police station in Shanghai's Xuhui district to report the incident. Li had bought the bag for 40,000 Yuan (S$7,588) earlier in 2025.

She had left it near her front door, but soon realized it was missing. Despite searching the entire house and having various individuals visit, Li never suspected that her stolen bag might have been resold. It was a friend of hers who discovered the bag listed online, matching the style, condition, and even the mention of it being bought in Japan.

Li bought back the bag for 20,000 Yuan (S$3,794). The police traced the bag's journey, finding it resold five times from Shanghai to Guangzhou before returning to Shanghai. The buyer was identified as Zheng, one of Li's close friends. Li and Zheng had shared a house together for four months after Li faced a breakup. However, when Li realized the bag was missing, Zheng had suggested she check around the house. Zheng is now facing criminal charges for theft by the Xuhui police.