A woman who stays at Hangzhou East Railway Station in China to beg for money has been exposed as being wealthy.
A beggar (File photo)
A 79-year-old Chinese woman, who begs at Hangzhou East Railway Station, has been exposed as a wealthy woman, who merely enjoys begging.
According to
Global Times, the woman is well-off, has a family, who cares for her but prefers to beg. So, the railway resorted to broadcasting a message, telling passengers not to give her money.
“An elderly woman in the station uses her age to win sympathy. Her family financial situation is quite good, so please don’t fall for it,” said the broadcast played on repeat.
The woman’s son, who was identified as Zhang Ming confirmed that she was a woman, who owns houses and has savings.
Zhang told a local paper Metropolitan Express that his family makes money from numerous rental properties and a factory, which he runs.
“I serve her delicious meals every day. But she just insists on going out to beg,” he said. “In terms of money, she is a lot richer than most of the people here. She has savings in a few banks around here.”
Railway staff have appealed to local police, who deferred taking action.
The 79-year-old woman reportedly started off by selling maps at the railway station, but the management there disapproved of her little side hustle, so she started begging instead.
She reportedly arrives at the station every morning at 10am and doesn’t leave until 8pm. According to some sources, she makes around 300 yuan per day.
Railway staff hope that the broadcast will ruin her panhandling prospects, force her to give up and go back home.