Chinese tourist fills wrong form for lost wallet, lands in refugee shelter

Last month a 31-year-old Chinese man who was traveling through Germany realized he lost his wallet in Stuttgart, Germany. The tourist, whose name hasn't been disclosed, tried to ask authorities for a stolen goods form, but ended up filling out a refugee asylum application. This set "machinery in motion that he couldn't get out of," Christoph Schluetermannan, an official with the German Red Cross, told reporters. According to The Guardian:

From there, he was sent to Dortmund in northwestern Germany and on to the refugee home in Duelmen. "He simply did what he was told," Schluetermann said.

Schluetermann said he quickly noticed the man because "he was different from the others - very, very helpless."

With help from a translation app and then from a translator at a Chinese restaurant, it became clear that the man wanted to travel on to France and Italy, not seek asylum.

It took 12 days before the tourist was set free.