Any foreigner arrested in Shanghai will immediately be taken to their local or district Public Security Bureau. There they will be questioned, probably fined, possibly detained or even deported. According to Chinese law, a person may be detained for up to 15 days without charge and police are legally allowed to hold a foreigner for up to four days without having to contact their consulate or allowing them to make a phone call. During this time, the other party involved in the dispute will often demand large amounts of money from the foreigner in return for them dropping the charges. If no agreement is made, the case may go to trial, and detained foreigners sometimes have to wait up to a year for the trial to begin. What’s more, foreigners are not allocated a state lawyer and are rarely granted bail. Any foreigner who finds himself in this situation should contact their consulate in Shanghai as soon as possible to receive information on their rights.­­­­