Nowadays, many young people are keen on finding like-minded companions for trips, calling themselves "travel buddies." But whether they're really friends is another story.
Just recently, Tan Jun (a pseudonym) from Liaoyang was scammed out of his belongings by an unknown "travel buddy" simply because he let his guard down and took a sip of a drink provided by the other person.
Online meet-up, fooled by appearance
Tan Jun, 26, had been working in Jilin. But due to being in a long-distance relationship and his girlfriend wanting him to work in Shenyang, he quit his job in early March and took a train to Shenyang. After meeting up, his girlfriend gifted him an iPhone 4S.
With some free time on his hands, Tan Jun decided to find someone to join him on a trip to Yunnan to unwind. On March 27, he went to an internet cafe near Shenyang Railway Station and met Zhang Quan (a pseudonym), who also wanted to travel to Yunnan.
"At the time, we got along well, both feeling like young people, so I agreed to travel together," Tan Jun said.
At around 2 a.m. on March 28, Tan Jun and Zhang Quan met at the arranged internet cafe.
When they met, Zhang Quan was wearing dark blue jeans, a red hiking backpack, and white sneakers — the classic look of a "travel buddy." He also claimed to be a stage designer at a media company. Seeing that he didn’t look suspicious, Tan Jun felt mostly at ease.
Zhang Quan then suggested charging his phone, so Tan Jun brought him to the hotel where he had previously stayed. Along the way, Zhang Quan bought two bottles of drink, handing one to Tan Jun, who declined as they had just met.
Back in Tan Jun’s hotel room, Zhang Quan plugged in the phone and then placed what looked like a rectangular paper bundle containing money under the pillow, telling Tan Jun he preferred cash over cards since he always carried money on him.
Later, while chatting, Zhang Quan finished his own bottle of drink, then naturally opened the second bottle, poured half of it into the first bottle, and handed the remaining half along with the second bottle to Tan Jun.
Thinking nothing of it, Tan Jun took a sip — but that small mouthful caused him to pass out.
When Tan Jun woke up, six or seven hours had passed. Zhang Quan was gone, and Tan Jun discovered his Apple phone worth 6,080 yuan, SIM card, ID card, and 1,500 yuan in cash were all missing.
Surveillance footage captures "travel buddy's" face
Tan Jun immediately reported the incident to Taiyuan Police Station in Heping District, Shenyang.
After the report, police searched the room and found that the paper bundle under the pillow didn’t contain cash — just newspapers folded to look like money.
Police reviewed surveillance footage and identified Zhang Quan. He appeared to be nearly 40 years old, very thin, about 1.73 meters tall, wore glasses, a black top, jeans, and carried a red travel backpack.
Tan Jun provided Zhang Quan’s phone number, but police found it wasn’t registered under a real name.
Now, Tan Jun hopes the public can provide any relevant leads and has offered a reward of 1,000 yuan for information.