Lost Camera Finds Its Way From Macau To Hangzhou

A DJI camera lost after a concert in Macau has been returned to its owner more than a month later after an unexpected journey to Hangzhou, People's Daily reported yesterday.

The story drew attention on Chinese social media on September 10, after the owner, surnamed Huang, shared how the camera was recovered even though she had never filed a police report.

The case began in August, when a Hangzhou resident surnamed Fu returned from a concert in Macau and found an unfamiliar black DJI camera in her bag. The device was worth about 3,000 yuan (US$447).

Fu believed the camera had probably been put into her bag by mistake in the crowd after the concert. After returning to Hangzhou, she took it to the local police.

Police assistant Zheng Haida, from the station's video investigation office, then began trying to identify the owner. There was no contact information, and police did not know exactly when or where the camera had been lost.

Zheng checked the photos and videos stored in the camera and used portrait clues to trace possible links. The search eventually led him to Huang, and then to one of her friends in Hangzhou. The friend had not seen Huang for about half a year.

When the friend received a call from police and asked Huang whether she had lost something in Macau, Huang's first reaction was suspicion. She later said she had thought it might be a scam because she and her companions had given up hope of finding the camera.

Police explained how they had traced her and asked her to verify the device with purchase records and details from the images. Huang provided information about the date, place and what she had worn on August 17. Police compared the details with the material in the camera and confirmed she was the owner.

Huang then asked her Hangzhou friend to collect the camera on her behalf. At the police station, Zheng made a video call with Huang for one final confirmation.

Huang thanked Fu for handing in the camera. Fu said she had only wanted to help because the owner must have been worried.

The recovery also reconnected Huang with the friend she had not contacted for months.