A drug ring suspected of manufacturing crystal methamphetamine,
were recently arrested in Hancheng City, Shaanxi Province.
Late last Wednesday, police officers from across the province
stormed an underground crystal methamphetamine factory, detaining
ten people on suspicion of manufacturing the drug, commonly known
as "ice."
Already hailed as a success by the local Provincial Security
Bureau, the raid ensured that police apprehended the gang before
they were able to start distributing the drug.
During the raid, police seized over 3,000 "ice" crystals, 50
kilograms of raw materials and more than 20 kilograms of additives,
along with a wide array of drug-making equipment.
Bai Shaokang, deputy director of the Shaanxi Provincial Security
Bureau stressed that the gang's operations weres "well planned,"
with the participation of domestic and overseas "criminal
elements."
The suspects began to make preparations for drug production as
early as December last year when they procured the majority of
their raw materials from Zhuhai City, Guangdong Province.
In March, they hired an expert from Myanmar to give technical
guidance in drug making.
The Provincial Security Bureau revealed that preliminary
interrogations have discovered the gang had hoped to manufacture
over 200,000 crystals during the May Day holiday period, at a value
of over 6 million yuan (about US$750,000) on the local market.
(Xinhua News Agency May 8, 2007)