(Image source from: Two thieves expose corrupt officials in China})

Two thieves in China exposed corrupt officials of the country before an anti-graft body with the hope of getting their sentences reduced. The thieves were taken into custody for stealing from government offices and provided valuable tips against corrupt officials.

Tang Shuiyan, one of the thieves, reported about two alleged corrupt officials based in Hunan province in August. Shuiyan was out on bail and reported via the official website of Communist Party of China's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.

In order to support her tips she even confessed about seven other burglaries that she had committed in Liandu district of Zhejiang province.

Shuiyan was quoted as saying that she deserve imprisonment for her act of theft, but the corrupt officials also deserve punishment. If the reports exposes them, she hopes to get her sentence reduced.

Tang, who is out on bail, says it's easy to steal from local official buildings as she specialises on that type of theft. She says that from 2006 to the present she has been involved in stealing from local official buildings.

She compares theft to office cleaning. Whenever she returns to the office it's filled again with gifts, coupons and cash. But in 2012, she was inspired by the nationwide anti-corruption drive. After that she began to consider giving up her job of theft and started taking pictures of the stolen things.

The seven cases reported by Tang are still investigated by Liandu district's police department.

Tang's report comes soon after her friend, Fang Yunyun confessed her theft crimes and was sentenced to 10 years in prison for stealing. Like Tang, even Fang had tipped the anti-graft officials about corrupt officials.

In July, Fang confessed to stealing shopping cards and gifts valued at over 2 million yuan (USD 325,000) from the homes of two government officials', located in Anhui province in May.

Later she reported to the provincial discipline committee and the local procuratorate that she had seen property ownership papers of a 300-square-meter villa and a 1,800-square-metre plot of land at the officials' homes. But during her sentencing the local court did not take into account her confessions about the officials.

Fang is on bail as she is due to give birth in September. She reportedly said that she reported the cases as she hopes that her sentence would be reduced and she can take take care of her child in a better way.

(AW: Pratima Tigga)