Woman in east China ‘steals’ prize orchid worth US$3 million
Precious specimen had been on display at garden centre, but shopper thought it was fair game
A woman caused panic at a garden centre in eastern China recently when instead of leaving with the plant she’d paid for, she walked away with a 20 million yuan (US$3 million) prize orchid, local media reported.
Police were alerted to the incident after the owners of the nursery, in Yucheng, Shandong province, called to say that one of their most precious specimens was missing, news portal Iqilu.com reported on Saturday.
The new strain of orchid was incredibly rare and had taken eight years to cultivate, an employee was quoted as saying, adding that it was “like a parent plant” from which others could be propagated.
“We have orders totalling 20 million yuan from over 10 countries,” she said. “Without the ‘parent’, we won’t be able to fulfil them and we’ll lose all the money.”
The orchid had been on display at the garden centre when it disappeared, the report said.
