looter at a fire; thief at a fire scene
Abbreviation of 火事場泥棒. Refers specifically to someone who steals during the chaos of a fire.
See also: 火事場泥棒
opportunistic criminal during a crisis
Extended from the literal fire-looting sense; used for anyone who exploits a disaster or emergency to commit crimes. Less common than the literal sense.
A looter stole valuables from the fire scene.
Opportunistic criminals took advantage of the earthquake chaos.
Standard kanji spelling for this abbreviation.
Mixed kanji-kana spelling; less common but still seen.
Katakana spelling of the second element, sometimes used for emphasis or in informal writing.
Abbreviation of 火事場泥棒 (kajiba dorobō, 'fire-scene thief'), combining 火事 (kaji, 'fire') and 泥 (doro, short for 泥棒, 'thief').