A young man in Shanghai robbed a jewelry store on Saturday in order to enjoy "a quiet period" in jail, Shanghai Morning Post reported.

The man, surnamed Jin, who is in his early 20s, walked into a jewelry store in suburban Songjiang district wielding a knife and said he wanted to rob it.

He surrendered when police arrived and said everything in his life was going wrong so he wanted to spend "a quiet period" behind bars.

Jin, who does not have a history of mental problems or drug abuse according to preliminary investigations, has been placed under criminal detention.