The Chinese Embassy in Kyrgyzstan warned Chinese citizens on Monday of danger in the Central Asian state after dozens of Chinese citizens were allegedly robbed recently by local residents in the capital Bishkek.

Nearly 20 Chinese citizens were victims of robbery from October 22 to November 24, with one injured on the head, according to a statement released on Monday on the embassy's website. The economic loss totaled $13,800, in addition to three laptops and three cameras, it noted.

The embassy has received nine reports of such robberies since November 11.

However, Chen Junhuang, a Chinese businessman in Zhonghai market in Bishkek, told the Global Times that he believed the total number of people that were robbed must be much higher than 20.

"A lot of people chose not to call the police because they are afraid of retaliation," he said.

 "To tackle the problem, we are asking Kyrgyzstan's authorities to adopt some long-lasting measures, like to building police boxes and installing cameras in markets where Chinese businessmen gather,"  Xia Jincheng, a consul at the embassy, told the Global Times on Monday.