A man from northeastern China has shocked the internet after he stole eight cars and drove them on the journey home, one after the other, to avoid paying for an 鈥渆xpensive鈥 flight.
According to mainland media outlet New Yellow River, the man, surnamed Chen, is from Liaoning province and had been travelling alone in Changsha, Hunan province, in central China.
On May 31, he bought a flight ticket home for 1,500 yuan (US$200) but cancelled it, deciding it was too expensive.
An inveterate car thief, Chen reverted to his old habit.
He entered unlocked car dealerships at night, took keys from cabinets and drove off in vehicles that were waiting to be serviced.
He also forced his way into quiet, unattended car parks, chose an older model of car and started them by tampering with the ignition.
Starting in June, Chen travelled north through seven cities, stealing eight cars along the way. Each time one ran out of fuel, he left it behind and took another.
To save money, he also took valuables from the cars to pay for food and road tolls.
Chen鈥檚 journey covered more than 14 hours on the road.
On June 2, a member of staff at a showroom in Wuhan, central China, noticed a vehicle worth more than 150,000 yuan (US$20,000) and car keys were missing, and called the police.
Officers tracked the stolen car and found it had left Wuhan, heading north.
The following day in Hebei province, Chen was caught trying to steal another car. He injured the owner while successfully fleeing in panic.
However, on June 4, police found Chen asleep inside a car in a Hebei car park and arrested him.
The eight cars Chen used were reportedly worth around one million yuan (US$140,000) in total.
All of the stolen vehicles have been recovered while Chen remains in detention.
People involved in serious cases of car theft can face more than 10 years in prison and a fine.
The story has gained more than 20 million views on social media.
鈥淎ll this just to avoid spending 1,500 yuan? Totally not worth it. Why travel if you cannot afford it?鈥 said one online observer.
鈥淐hen clearly has determination. If he applied it elsewhere, he could have achieved something, what a waste,鈥 said another.
Outrageous stories about travel often hit the headlines in China.
Over the past three years, a Shanghai graduate took more than 120 domestic and international trips using stolen cash and credit cards.