Chinese police capture over 34,000 suspects for food-related crimes

BEIJING -- Police in China nabbed more than 34,000 suspects while handling 19,000 food-related criminal cases last year in a crackdown that started in May, the Ministry of Public Security (MPS) said Monday.

The monetary value involved in the cases amounted to 16.3 billion yuan (about $2.51 billion), the ministry said, adding that more than 9,500 crime dens had been demolished and over 3,100 criminal groups were busted during the period.

The MPS launched the "Kunlun 2020" operation in May, targeting violations of food and drug safety laws, intellectual property rights, among others.

During the operation, police also dealt with more than 4,600 cases and detained over 10,000 suspects for jeopardizing drug safety.

Besides, about 8,600 cases related to crimes involving counterfeiting and rights infringement had been solved.