The first thing most of us would do if our home was burglarized would be to call the police. Unless, of course, you're a corrupt official.

Police in Dalian, Liaoning Province recently arrested an eight-member gang of thieves who confessed to swiping more than 2 million yuan ($325,812) in cash and valuables from the homes of two city government bureau chiefs.

The group later revealed to investigators that such officials make ideal targets. They often possess large amounts of cash at home and other goods that they would be reluctant to alert authorities if any of it happened to go missing.

Both the group members and burgled officials are currently under investigation, the Tianjin-based City Express reported on September 23.

The case in Dalian is just one example of anti-graft investigators getting help from such unlikely informants.

As anti-graft campaigns continue to pick up momentum, an increasing number of women claiming to be the mistresses of officials have tipped off authorities to their lovers' illicit finances.

The cases have spurred widespread public discussions as to whether anti-graft investigators should increasingly rely on thieves and other informants in ferreting out corrupt officials.