Man gets 3 years' prison for throwing objects from top of 18-story building

A man in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, was sentenced to three years behind bars for throwing objects from heights on three separate occasions last year.

The man, surnamed Jiang, threw a water bucket, a flowerpot and a dumbbell with weight plates from the top of an 18-story building in a residential community in November last year, which scared many residents and damaged two cars.

On Nov 19, Jiang was upset after being cheated out of 90,000 yuan ($13,700) by a friend on the internet and being criticized at work.

Jiang went to the roof of his residential building to get some fresh air after drinking some alcohol before going home. He then noticed a bucket filled with water sitting in a corner. He picked up the bucket, which weighed about 5 kilograms, and threw it off the roof.

Six days later, he threw a dumbbell with four weight plates, which totaled 25 kg, from the roof. The dumbbell fell on a car, and the noise was so startling that some neighbors later told police that they thought it was a gas explosion. Jiang later admitted to police that he knew the dumbbell could've easily killed or injured people.

On Nov 28, Jiang threw a flowerpot from the roof and hit another car.

"If a person throws objects from heights intentionally, the crime of endangering public security by dangerous means shall be applied," said Wang Dan, a prosecutor from the Liangxi District Procuratorate in Wuxi, who advised the community at the time to contact the public security bureau as soon as possible and find some eyewitnesses to help with the investigation into Jiang.

Jiang said he had epilepsy and suicidal thoughts, which made him emotional and incapable of controlling his behavior. However, the forensic institute of Wuxi Mental Health Center examined him and concluded that he was not epileptic and did not appear to be struggling with suicidal thoughts.

China's Civil Code, which will take effect on Jan 1, will prohibit the throwing of objects from heights and says those responsible for building management should take measures to prevent objects from being thrown from structures.

In November last year, the Supreme People's Court issued a judicial opinion saying that those intentionally throwing objects from heights should be convicted of the crimes of endangering public safety by dangerous means, intentional injury or intentional homicide.

The issue has been in the public eye for years following the construction of tall buildings nationwide and the tragedies caused by objects being thrown from heights. Some people who committed such crimes have been sent to prison.

A man from the Inner Mongolia autonomous region was also sentenced to three years in prison on Friday for throwing a beer bottle from the ninth floor of a residential building in a crowded area on three separate occasions.

In September, a man in Beijing was sentenced to one year in prison with two years' reprieve for throwing many objects out of a window on Feb 26, including glasses, a metal biscuit box and a thermos cup.