Missing 'brides', a hidden hurt for 'leftover' men

Beisitou Village, Handan, North China's Hebei province, where several Vietnamese 'brides' went missing on the same day last year, Dec 12 2014. [Photo/CFP]

A victim, surnamed Zhu, said marriage broker Wu collected his "bride's" ID card from him days before the disappearance, on the pretense of a complete set of documents securing a legal marriage, the Beijing Times reported.

"Brides" of foreign nationalities running away is not unusual according to Chinese media. A similar case occurred on Oct 12, 2013, when seven Cambodian "brides" who lived in Jinyun county, East China's Zhejiang province disappeared on the same day.

According to a regulation relating to cross-cultural marriages issued in 1994, no marriage agency is allowed to broker marriage for foreigners. Individuals are also prohibited from making a profit from foreign matchmaking or carrying out marriage fraud.