A man jumped into a river in a suicide attempt, after a row with his girlfriend, then watched TV coverage at home during the search for his body, the Chutian Metropolis Daily reported on Monday.

The row occurred at about 8 pm on Wednesday as the couple walked along a riverbank in Anlu city, Hubei province.

The man suddenly jumped into the river. His distraught girlfriend screamed for help and called the police rescue hotline.

The police and fire brigade arrived and divers carried out a two-hour search.

Then a local resident told police that the "missing" man was a neighbor and he had seen him come out of the water. He also said he was an accomplished swimmer.

Police immediately went to the man's home and found he was watching TV on his sofa. He told police that he just wanted to scare his nagging girlfriend.