Angry man sets 'slow' internet cables on fire; imprisoned for 7 years 

Beijing: A Chinese man has been sentenced to seven years in prison for setting fire to internet equipment after becoming enraged over a slow connection, said authorities.

The man identified as Lan, was at an internet cafe in southern Guangxi province last June when his frustration over the connection speed spilled over. 

Being incensed, Lan responded by destroying a public box containing fiber optic network cables.

The court said the man “used a lighter to set fire to a napkin he was carrying, then set fire to a telecommunications box at a traffic intersection”.

The blaze left nearly 4,000 homes and offices, including a public hospital, without internet for 28 to 50 hours.

“After the incident, public security officials seized Lan’s instrument of crime – a lighter,” the court in Cenxi said.

The man, however, was later hit with a seven-year prison sentence for “destroying public telecommunications facilities”.

Moreover, the drastic story sparked widespread ridicule on the Chinese internet, with one Weibo user calling the man a “big baby.”