How to get out of jail early in China: buy an inventor’s idea and patent it
Inmates taking advantage of a law that says proven inventors can get their jail terms commuted, according to newspaper report
Prisoners in China are buying inventors’ ideas so they can patent them and reduce their jail sentences, according to a newspaper report.
The inmates are taking advantage of a law that allows jail terms to be commuted if prisoners can prove they have come up with important technical innovations and inventions, the Beijing Youth Daily said.
The newspaper said it had found a number of agents openly advertising the service to “reduce sentences by patented innovations”.
One intellectual property agent in the northern province of Shaanxi said the service usually started at about 6,800 yuan (HK$8,580) for a basic patent application on behalf of a prisoner.
More complex invention patents cost up to 60,000 yuan, the newspaper said, after one of its reporters posed as a relative of a jail inmate enquiring about the service.
The agent asked for detailed information about the prisoner, including their education, work experience, interests and family background so they could find the most appropriate patent that would have the best chance of getting their sentence reduced, the report said.
