While we love that Beijing is one of the safest cities to live in, we're not too happy to see this sort of news: a Chinese citizen earned a reward of RMB 3,000 for tipping police off about a suspected foreign terrorist that police later learned was not in fact a terrorist, Xinhua reports.

According to the report, the Beijing Office of Counter-Terrorism recently received a report from a local citizen that a foreigner was acting suspiciously. After ruling out a terrorist risk, the police then rewarded the citizen with RMB 3,000 in cold hard cash for the tip anyhow.

There was no mention of what happened to the foreigner that was accused, nor what activity aside from a "suspicious conversation" that caused the accusations to be made. So careful with the slang people: no telling your friends "Dude, let's go to that new club tonight, I hear it's the BOMB!"

Lest you think this is a Chinese vs. foreign thing, it's important to point out that the police are totally into equal opportunity tip-offs regardless of race, creed, or color.
 

A new "Anti-Terrorism Act" was formally implemented as of January 1 that encourages vigilant citizens to report all suspicious activities to police. To date, the police have received five reports involving terrorism-related violence and over RMB 60,000 has been paid to local citizens as a result.

The news comes on the heels of the social media buzz over the past couple of years about the power of the "Chaoyang Masses" (朝阳群众) – a term employed by police for vigilant citizens that report suspicious activities – that have netted even well-known celebrities such as Jackie Chan's son Jaycee for recreational marijuana drug use.

Citizens are requested to report all suspicious activity by calling the police at 110.

Photo. 12580.tv

Michael Wester(thebeijinger)