Five seized in cross-border heroin trafficking

KUNMING  -- Police in Southwest China's Yunnan province have arrested five suspects and seized 41 kg of heroin in the latest crackdown on drug trafficking.

The men and drug were seized in Ruili City in Dai-Jingpo autonomous prefecture of Dehong on March 31, the public security bureau of Longling County said in a statement Saturday.

The bureau received reports in February that an overseas drug trafficking ring were planning to ship narcotics to China.

Police detected the two suspects from Myanmar as soon as they crossed the border into China at 4 pm on March 31. They then followed them to a hotel in Ruili City, where the suspects met their three Chinese collaborators. All five were arrested.

From the trunk of their SUV, police found 120 blocks of heroin, which weighed 41.785 kg.

The two suspects from Myanmar said they had been promised 5,000 yuan ($725 dollars).

The investigation continues.

Dehong prefecture is close to the opium-growing Golden Triangle. Last year, border police in Dehong seized 1.6 tonnes of narcotics, completed investigations into 668 drug-related crimes and arrested 662 suspects.