TheNanfang » illegal drugs

Drug-Riddled Guangdong Town Presents Challenge to Police

Natalie Wang — Wed, 25 Jun 2014 00:00:00 +0000

A police raid on Boshe village in December, 2013.

Like other Chinese provinces, Guangdong often launches ill-fated campaigns against corruption, prostitution or terrorism. While some campaigns enjoy moderate levels of success, when it comes to the drug trade, attempts at intervention have been less than stellar. Not to put too fine a point on it, the province’s Deputy Police Chief recently admitted that he is unable to eradicate drug production in Lufeng.

READ: Drug Sting at Hotel in Guangzhou Nets 10 Foreigners

“It will take arduous work over a long period to solve the problem of Lufeng. We are trying to use high-handed measures to clamp down on its drug trade. We hope to see a turning point in the second half of the year,” said Guo Shaobo, Deputy Head of Guangdong Police Department, China News reported.

Locally known as “the fortress”, Lufeng is responsible for one-third of all crystal meth production in China.

READ: Two Middle Eastern Men Swallow RMB 2.25 Million Worth of Drugs,
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Located on the coast of the South China Sea, Lufeng is notorious for its meth production. The city’s stronghold of Boshe village, nestled deep in the mountains, provides the perfect hideout for the family-run meth empire.

Suspects run at the first sign of police, while villagers intently watch for any movement on city outskirts. In some cases, villagers organize road barricades to block police from entering, Yangcheng Evening News reported.

The drug trade is an open secret in the village, given that the party chief and some corrupt police officials shield its drug production. In fact, the party chief was named the “biggest drug trafficker” in the region. More than one-fifth of all households are linked to drug production or trafficking, which is the only profitable livelihood for many villagers.

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Still, even to some experienced policemen, the extent of the village’s drug operation remains shocking. In December 2013, a massive police raid involving more than 3,000 policemen, using helicopters and speedboats, seized three tons of crystal meth and 23 tons of raw materials, South China Morning Post reported.

According to Guo, authorities in Guangdong have seized a total of 14.1 tons of drugs, with a street value of nearly RMB 160 million, since launching “Operation Thunder” in July 2013. The province has busted 320 criminal drug rings, arrested 20,403 people and dismantled 361 drug production bases. In addition to the traditionally known drugs, new drug varieties are surfacing, such as a new drug called Khat or African Tea.

Even with those impressive statistics, the Deputy Police Chief is less than optimistic about his department’s ability to stem the flow of drugs into Guangdong.

Photos: SCMP, China News

Huge Shipment of Khat Seized in Guangdong

Charles Liu — Mon, 23 Jun 2014 09:54:49 +0000

Guangzhou customs recently announced that they have seized 2,069 kg of smuggled drugs since October of last year. As impressive as that is, it pales in comparison to the recent one-day haul made by Huangpu custom agents who say they have seized a shipment of khat that weighs an amazing 3,531 kg, reports the Dongguan Times.

If you’re unfamiliar with khat, which is also known by the names “Arabian Tea” or “Bushman’s Tea”, the Guangzhou police want you to be aware that this drug is equivalent to heroin and has a euphoric high that lasts for two days.

Described as relatively new to China, the emergence of khat is troubling to local law officials because the drug looks like amaranth greens when fresh, and like dried tea leaves when dried.

READ: Meet the New Drug on the Streets of Guangzhou: Khat, the “Arabian Tea”

Khat received lots of attention recently when it was reported the drug was being packaged in orange drink powder packages with cartoon images on the front.

Khat is considered a way of life for some cultures though it is considered a prohibited substance in countries like the USA and the UK. The World Health Organization does not consider khat to be seriously addictive.

Photo: Dongguan Daily Report

Nigerian man caught using Chinese girlfriend to smuggle drugs out of Guangdong

Natalie Wang — Wed, 26 Mar 2014 00:58:07 +0000

It’s often hard to find someone with that special something that draws you towards him or her. But that was not the case for a Nigerian man caught by police in Guangzhou for drug trafficking. He knew exactly what he was looking for in a girlfriend – a perfect drug mule.

According to a report by China News, the Nigerian man, whose name was not disclosed in the report, deliberately sought Chinese women as girlfriends and lured them to help him smuggle drugs by mailing packages of drugs abroad, the report said.

In order to further reduce police suspicion, the drug dealer would ask his girlfriend to send a package from Zhuhai instead of Guangzhou where he lives.

The Nigerian man was arrested after police officers at Gongbei Customs Department seized a mail package containing more than 600 grams of crystal meth sent from Zhuhai to Malaysia in January this year. After a two month investigation, the couple was arrested at an apartment they shared in Baiyuan district in Guangzhou on March 18.

This, however, is not the first time a drug dealer used Chinese girlfriends to cover his drug trail. In 2006, a Nigerian man in Guangzhou was sentenced to death for dealing drugs. His Chinese girlfriend also received a death penalty with a two-year reprieve for assisting the illegal trade, China Daily reported in 2006.

Home page photo credit: CBC