Traffickers go online for ‘business’
Print Edition
Shanghai police rounded up 600 suspects who used the internet for drug trafficking across China between April and June.
Police said that drug traffickers were increasingly using the Internet and Internet chat room for transactions.
They cracked 725 cases, out of which 546 cases involved the Internet — a whopping 75.3 percent.
Of the 799 people busted in the operation, 600 were found using the Internet. A total of 131.04 kilograms of drugs were seized with 39.44kg traded online.
Most of those caught were involved in clandestine chat groups on Tencent QQ.
The number of cases involving online chat groups busted in the past three months was a massive jump from the same period last year, police said.
The chat groups had identities like ice, meat and hookah. New members were usually added only after they were recommended by the existing ones.
Police said they searched keywords, or “alibis” of drugs known to them, and managed to infiltrate the groups. In some cases they were tipped off about some chat groups and started investigation.
QQ is the most widely used instant messaging service in China. It enables users to chat via webcam, and has been a great refuge for traffickers and users, police said.
In some cases, drug customers in the chat groups were directed to online shops on taobao.com which sold drug-related appliances such as meth pots disguised as ordinary tea pots and tobacco pipes, police said. In a recent case in Jinshan District, 1,379 meth pots were sold across China between February and May from just one shop alone.
Police also said that more first-time drug users were found this year — among them were white-collar workers.
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