“I always saw him coming at night and thought he was genuinely working overtime!” a security guard remarked when questioned by police. The individual in question, Ma, was formerly a maintenance technician in the workshop of an automobile manufacturing plant in Taizhou, Zhejiang province. Having joined the factory in 2018, he was considered a seasoned employee. However, no one anticipated that this "veteran" would embark on an irreversible path following a "chance discovery."

One day, while in the welding workshop where materials were stored, Ma noticed a batch of leftover copper electrode caps. Gazing at these seemingly insignificant yet "valuable" copper components, greed took hold of him.

That evening, he pretended to come to the factory for overtime work. After swiping his card to enter, he stealthily made his way into the workshop. Handful by handful, he stuffed the copper electrode caps into his pockets, then carried them out of the facility, hiding them in the trunk of his car parked outside the gate.

Initially, he felt some apprehension. But after several days passed without anyone noticing the missing copper parts, he repeated his "overtime" act. Like an ant moving its nest, he carried out over ten such thefts. Once he had accumulated approximately 50 kilograms, he sold the stolen goods.

From then on, he became uncontrollable, frequently showing up for "overtime." It wasn't until late April this year that staff noticed a significant decrease in the number of copper electrode caps. They promptly installed temporary surveillance cameras in the workshop.

At 3 a.m. on May 10, public video footage captured an employee entering the workshop and quickly leaving. Staff immediately recognized the person as Ma. Upon reviewing clock-in records and gate surveillance videos, they observed that Ma's jacket pockets appeared flat when he entered but were noticeably bulging when he exited.

Consequently, the factory owner decisively reported the incident to the community police officer. Following the leads, police officers conducted an in-depth investigation and arrested Ma at his rented residence on the morning of May 14.

According to Ma's confession, from March 2025 to May 2026, he stole copper components at least ten times per month on average, totaling over 150 instances. Currently, Ma has been placed under criminal detention according to the law, and the case is under further investigation.