Police have cracked a ring of 16 profoundly deaf thieves operating via QQ chat rooms in the city of Jinan, Shandong Province.

Police busted the group after coming across two profoundly deaf men they had recently caught stealing. They followed the men to their residence and arrested them, along with 14 other members of the gang.

The suspects admitted they had gathered in the city in response to a call from a local thief in a QQ chat room.