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[Blablurn]

Local television showed the aftermath of the wedding, complete with bewildered guests

A man in northern China has been arrested on his wedding day after his wife's family realised that the 200 guests he invited from his side as family and friends were paid actors.

According to local media in Shaanxi province, the family of the wife, surnamed Liu, became suspicious during the conversations they were having with people from the groom's side who said they were "just friends" and not making clear how they knew him. When the ceremony started without any trace of the groom's parents, the game appeared to be up.

In interviews with regional TV station Shaanxi TV "guests" said they were paid 80 yuan ($12; £9) by the groom, named as Mr Wang, for the day to pose as family and friends. Some said they are normally taxi drivers and students, and one man revealed a conversation he had with the groom on social media platform WeChat, negotiating a price for him to be there.

As for the bride, it's reported that the couple had been together for three years, but didn't notice anything wrong at first as they had completely different circles of friends.

It's not entirely clear what the motives were behind the groom's stunt, or even which laws he's deemed to have broken. Some media claim that the wife's family did not agree to the marriage because he was poor, so he stopped his entire side from coming so as not to shame them. Regional state news portal Xibu Online says that a police investigation is ongoing.

Agog at the circumstances behind the wedding, Chinese social media users have attempted to make sense of what happened. "How can he be so poor, and then pay 200 guests?" one Sina Weibo user asks; while others speculate whether there might be some other circumstance that made him too embarrassed to invite family and friends.

One hired 'guest' showed an online conversation in which he haggled over the price

Source: http://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-news-from-elsewhere-39771689

 

[TheUntamedLegend]

The biggest wedding ceremony!

 

[PorygonVandal]

But why he got arrested? xD What's the actual crime?

 

[Tagyhag]

Why was he arrested?

 

[Escape Goat]

Nothing here makes sense.

 

[Laieon]

...so what crime did he commit?

 

[dragonlife]

Some media claim that the wife's family did not agree to the marriage because he was poor, so he stopped his entire side from coming so as not to shame them.

This is really sad.

 

[DJ_Lae]

I don't get why he was arrested - embarrassed, maybe, although I think it's common in some other countries to rent wedding guests (I could have sworn this is a thing in South Korea).

 

[Machina]

I dunno if it's because of lack of sleep but this story hurts my brain

 

[Usobuko]

Get paid to eat free food in a social setting.

Not bad.

 

[zeemumu]

 

[Wolf Akela]

What crime?

 

[old manatee]

I don't understand why he was arrested. If being a sad weirdo is illegal I'm doomed.

 

[tribal24]

lol why did he get arrested I'm confused.

 

[Imperfected]

I assume he's actually an international man of mystery and this whole marriage was just a ploy to maintain a cover identity.

 

[Militaratus]

The closest criminal concept of why he was arrested that I can think of is Fraud. Perhaps he gets a substantial amount of money from her family for marrying her, and since the wedding seems to be on false pretenses, her family assumes he was scamming them.

 

[I Stalk Alone]

He got arrested because the actors he hired as police were there so he can make a getaway just in case the gig was up. They were paid $15 each.

 

[wedca]

Him getting arrested is a terrible plot twist!

 

[exmachina64]

The closest criminal concept of why he was arrested that I can think of is Fraud. Perhaps he gets a substantial amount of money from her family for marrying her, and since the wedding seems to be on false pretenses, her family assumes he was scamming them.

Three years is a long con.

 

[Bold One]

He got arrested because the actors he hired as police were there so he can make a getaway just in case the gig was up. They were paid $15 each.

dafuq?

to what end?

 

[Imperfected]

Him getting arrested is a terrible plot twist!

Well, yes. If this rom-com were to standard, after the humiliating revelation when all the guests were leaving, his real mother and father would have run into the bride on her way out, and they would have all come to realize he had nothing to be ashamed of because she loved him just the way he was.

If only he were Richard Gere.

 

[Astral Dog]

I feel bad for this man,regardless of his intentions spending money for 200 fake guests and then cancelling the wedding must suck.

Though something must be wrong here the girlfriend has reason to be suspicious

 

[Militaratus]

Three years is a long con.

I'm not assuming he was trying to marry her for the money, and he might actually love her, it's just... Rich people be crazy and paranoid.

 

[- J - D -]

Wow this is actually a really compelling mystery.

 

[Count Dookkake]

Talk about inviting trouble.

 

[tearsintherain]

Remember in Lost when Sun met Jin's father?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v7iBPI5Cvpw



ITS REAL TO ME

 

[Imperfected]

Maybe his family and friends are just complete assholes and would have ruined his wedding.

Maybe he's actually the runaway heir of a Chinese billionaire and wanted to live his pauper's fantasy without his new wife spoiling it by finding out about his father.

Maybe he actually escaped from North Korea and has no friends or family in the country to begin with.

 

[Lautaro]

It's not entirely clear what the motives were behind the groom's stunt, or even which laws he's deemed to have broken.

Well, thanks for nothing BBC.

 

[Air Zombie Meat]

Maybe he just didn't pay them.

 

[Matrix XII]

This is bizarre.

 

[Phox]

I'm definitely going to look forward to the follow up story on this one that's just weird

 

[Coreda]

"You've been arrested for the crime... of having no real friends"

 

[hipbabboom]

Seems like a wealthy people flexing their bribed police muscle.

 

[EatinOlives]

For the people asking "what's the crime":

It's not entirely clear what the motives were behind the groom's stunt, or even which laws he's deemed to have broken.

Nobody seems to know.

 

[hirokazu]

Why exactly did police get involved in this?

 

[Replicant]

I think his bride's family are too dumb to understand what 'crime' actually means.

Why would he wants to get shackled to these snobby dumbasses?

 

[mugurumakensei]

For the people asking "what's the crime":



Nobody seems to know.

Wrong. He is guilty of the gravest crime of all. Murder is bad, but offending the sensibilities of the bourgeoisie that's the worst thing a man can do.

 

[MMarston]

For the people asking "what's the crime":



Nobody seems to know.

He was stopped in the name of love.


And he broke her heart.

 

[Einchy]

For the people asking "what's the crime":



Nobody seems to know.

It's sounding like the bride's parents got him arrested for being poor.

 

[lupinko]

I read this as Chinese room as in the dev who made the walking simulators. Then I realized this was not gaming.

 

[GhostWriter24]

Nothing here makes sense.

China, you mean?

 

[Shaanyboi]

Counterfeit wedding guests.

The ultimate 'China don't care'

 

[studyguy]

Hold on this is a friends only zone. To the slammer with you.

 

[Zasa]

 

[Symphonia]

Universal are snapping up the rights to this as we speak.

 

[Dark_castle]

All my wut.

 

[Spladam]

That is a bad day man. Going to jail because you knew your drunk uncles were going to start fights and flip tables. He probably told the cops to arrest him so that he could hide from his shame, and his in-laws.

 

[Team Alucard]

I'm pretty sure this was the plot to a Kevin Hart movie.

 

[Slayer-33]

Oh Jesus Christ lol, look at the background

 

[sirap]

I'm pretty sure this was the plot to a Kevin Hart movie.

Yep.