In Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, a female tenant was sexually harassed by her landlord. Due to the landlord being over 70 years old, he escaped a 7-day administrative detention penalty, which sparked discussions among netizens and made headlines on Baidu’s hot search on February 21.
On February 19, a netizen posted a video on social media claiming that his girlfriend was sexually harassed by a 70-year-old landlord in a rental house in Nanjing, Jiangsu.
According to the netizen interviewed by Dahe Daily on February 20, just over ten days ago, he and his girlfriend had just moved into the rental house. Hours before the incident, the landlord had messaged his girlfriend, asking if she was alone at home. He used the excuse of bringing an extra chair for the rented room to deceive her into opening the door, where he proceeded to sexually harass her girlfriend.
The determi nl-mail的七十周歲以上的人, 根據《中華人民共和國治安管理處罰法》第二十一條第（三）項之規定，不執行行政拘留處罰。
It was learned from the Decree of Administrative Penalty with the serial number of [2025] No.35 by the Nantong Public Security Bureau’s Development Zone Sub-bureau, the police confirmed that on the evening of February 17, the landlord in question employed tactics such as touching, groping, and fondling the female tenant in his rental property.
As per Dahe Daily on February 20, Mr. Liu, the news poster, introduced that the landlord was also a real estate agent boss, and they got to know him through another agent. They started renting the house on February 7. Mr. Liu’s girlfriend, Wang Fang (pseudonym), mentioned that when they moved in, the door did not have a peephole. Taking safety into consideration, she asked the landlord to install one, and the landlord agreed. “When he came to install the peephole a few days ago, he even asked about my boyfriend’s situation,” said Wang Fang, who was alone at home at that time as her boyfriend had gone back to his hometown due to some personal matters.
According to the aforementioned Administrative Penalty Decree, due to the fact that the landlord was over 70 years old, as stated in Article 21, Paragraph 3 of the “People’s Republic of China Public Security Administration Punishment Law,” the administrative detention penalty was not executed.
Officials from the Xiaohai Police Station and the Development Zone Sub-bureau of the Nanjing Public Security Bureau all told Dahe Daily reporters on the 20th to bring relevant documents for inquiries at the sub-bureau.
Personnel from the Xiaohai Police Station in the jurisdiction also stated to Dahe Daily that their procedures adhere to national laws and regulations, making it difficult to implement detentions.
This news quickly sparked discussions among more than 700 netizens on Baidu alone. The majority expressed dissatisfaction with the situation.
“Mimi hates being late” stated: “Age should not be a free pass. Cases like this should be judged by the rule of law and morality. Otherwise, how can women dare to rent a place alone? How can their safety be guaranteed?”
Similarly, “Whisper whisper quietly” asked, “Does this mean that once you turn 70, you can do whatever you want?”
Some netizens believe that as people are living longer, the laws should be adjusted accordingly.
“Fresh breeze enters the arms 0310” said: “The law really needs to be amended. 70 may have been old before, but now it’s at least 80 to 90 for old age; also, there needs to be further control over minors.”
“Mqdlf__” also pointed out, “Isn’t this similar to the situation where children committing crimes have the age of criminal responsibility increased early due to early maturity now? Likewise, as people live longer, the age of criminal responsibility should also be pushed back!”
Some netizens revealed that the reason why older people over the age of 70 may escape detention and other penalties is that detention centers and prisons are reluctant to bear the responsibility of caring for elderly individuals who may fall ill or even die.
“Hsxqt7” disclosed, “Most seventy-year-olds have some illnesses to some extent, and the level of care in our detention centers is not something I want to talk about. Many times, they will be rejected or excused from administrative penalties due to health reasons. In the detention center of my small county town, there have been several cases in the past decade where elderly individuals were arrested and then sent to the hospital due to illness, resulting in substantial police compensations.”
“Bridge super 3h” added, “Over ten years ago in Dong Market, Helen City, Heilongjiang Province, an eighty-two-year-old and a seventy-five-year-old fought over a woman, resulting in the death of the seventy-five-year-old. The court ruled for parole for the eighty-two-year-old.”
“Hulu v568 Hulu” suggested, “Strongly demand the cancellation of the provision exempting individuals above 70 from execution, as this violates the rights of the victims. Everyone should be held accountable for their actions, and if they fall ill or die during the sentence, they will not be pursued.”
In response to the discussions among netizens, Dahe Daily cited the comments of Fu Jian, the director of the Henan Ze Jin Law Firm, who mentioned that being over 70 and avoiding administrative detention does not mean escaping other legal obligations. Offenders may still face fines, warnings, or other penalties. Generally, individuals over 70 who commit crimes do not evade criminal penalties, but those over 75 who commit crimes intentionally may receive lighter penalties.