Shopkeeper beaten for charity tin

The owner of a fish and chip shop in California Gully has been left bloodied and bruised after he tried to prevent thieves stealing several hundreds dollars in donations for sick children. 

Jianxin Huang – known as ‘John’ to Bendigo friends and customers of his takeaway joint, Eliades – said his store on Eaglehawk Road was the target of petty theft almost every week. 

He calls them “the drug people,” people who come into the store to steal drinks and snacks. He tells them not to come back. Sometimes he reports them to police, often he doesn’t – “you can’t call the police every time”. 

But this Saturday was different. When a man and a woman tried to take a charity tin with several years worth of donations, Huang went out into the street to confront them. 

“When I saw that I was so upset,” he said. 

“Then, very quickly, I was on the ground and they were hitting me and kicking me in the head.

My wife tried to help me and they had her on the ground… she was bleeding from the mouth.”

For his troubles, Huang was taken to hospital with cuts and bruises to his face. The injuries of his wife – Aoi Li Huang, or ‘Ivy,’ – were not as severe, but Huang said both were left hurt and frightened. 

A man and a woman who fled the scene on foot were arrested shortly after by police and charged. The 30-year-old was from Long Gully 25-year-old woman from Eaglehawk.

Both Huang and his wife Aoi Li were thrown to the ground and punched and kicked in the face on Saturday.  

The Huangs came to Melbourne from China 15 years ago and moved to Bendigo five years ago because they thought they would have better opportunities and be more welcome in a smaller community. And, for the most part, they have. 

“The community has been good to us, the people love us that come in here,” he said. 

In return, Huang said he tries to give back to the community through charities. 

“We’re not rich people, but we want to be nice and we try to do our best to help people,” he said. 

And the Bendigo community is already rallying behind the Huangs.

Bendigo Advertiser readers took to Facebook to show their support for Huang, among them communications strategist and La Trobe graduate Willa Whitewolf.

“Disgusting behavior,” she wrote. 

“I'm going to do a lot of shopping at that milk bar now. 

“It was heroic of the owner to challenge them.”

Huang, however, has not had a chance to see the messages yet. 

He was back at work Sunday, but has not yet had his phone returned to him after the two thieves took it from him when they were attacking him.