4 arrested for stealing relics from the Great Wall

Four men were arrested on Tuesday for stealing two marble-carved animal ornaments at the Juyongguan section of the Great Wall, said the procuratorate in Beijing's Changping district.

The ornaments were removed on Feb 15 from a stone memorial archway erected during the Ming Dynasty (1369-1644).

The main suspect, surnamed Zhao, sold the two ornaments for 25,000 yuan ($4,000) the next day. He kept 10,000 yuan and divided the rest among the other three men.

The ornaments, made of white marble, a half meter in height and weighing more than 50 kg, were damaged during the theft, according to the staff from the Juyongguan section of the Great Wall, which is a national key cultural relics protection site.

The procuratorate was quoted by Beijing Morning Post as saying that the suspects would be sentenced based on the severity of the damaged to the relics.