East China customs busts diamond smuggling ring, five arrested

NANJING -- Nanjing Customs in East China's Jiangsu province has cracked a major diamond smuggling case, arresting five suspects in Chinese cities including Nanjing, Suzhou, and Guangzhou, and confiscating 53 diamonds.

According to the police, the suspects who were not authorized importers, selected diamonds from overseas suppliers through mobile phone applications and had them delivered in Hong Kong. They hired passengers and cross-border cargo agents to smuggle them to the mainland.

The seized diamonds are valued at about 50 million yuan ($7.35 million). The case is under further investigation.