Here's Strangest Crime Recorded Because of Coronavirus

In Hong Kong, an armed gang has stolen hundreds of toilet paper packages which has become a strategic good to contain the Coronavirus.

Hong Kong police are conducting wide-scale searches and investigations to arrest the armed gang, that committed the robbery in a region already suffering from a shortage of many goods as a result of the outbreak of the virus.

Early Monday morning, a delivery worker was transporting goods to a supermarket in the city's Mong Kok district. He had placed about 50 packs of toilet rolls, containing a total of about 600 rolls, outside the supermarket when three men stole them, a police spokesperson told CNN.

The police spokesman acknowledged that the men were holding knives when they threatened a deliveryman to stop and they stole an amount of toilet paper worth at $130.

Several hours later, the police found the stolen toilet rolls in a nearby guesthouse, and arrested two of the men.

The city government urged residents not to panic buy, trying to reassure the public that the supply chain would not be cut off -- but to no avail. Videos online show crowds of people at supermarkets across the city wildly jostling for toilet paper rolls.

[caption id="attachment_110432" align="aligncenter" width="424"] Toilet papers became startegic good to contain coronavirus[/caption]

The shortage of many commodities was caused by the high demand for shopping, in order to prevent the spread of the new Corona virus.

The limited supply of different goods in stores caused regular queues from customers as well as the disappearance of goods from the shelves shortly after the stores open their doors.

In addition to toilet paper, the demand for sterilization fluids and other cleaning preparations increased, while the demand for foodstuffs like rice and pasta.

The coronavirus, formally known as Covid-19, has infected more than 71,000 people globally, with 57 confirmed cases in Hong Kong. One person has died of the virus in the city -- marking one of only five deaths that have taken place outside mainland China.