(ECNS) -- Guangdong police have dismantled 90 new-type gangs and solved 353 criminal cases, arresting 1,201 suspects and seizing large volumes of assets, the provincial public security department announced Tuesday.
The crackdown targeted emerging offenses such as soft violence debt collection, malicious claim making, public opinion blackmail, labor racketeering, forced consumption, online predatory lending and harassment.
Cases included Zhongshan police busting a full chain forced consumption racket, Guangzhou police taking down an extortion ring preying on drivers with revoked licenses, Shenzhen police detaining 29 suspects in a debt collection gang, and Foshan police arresting 26 in a fake workplace injury scam. Eight similar gangs targeting construction sites were also dismantled, with 65 arrests.
Officials said Guangdong’s booming economy has given rise to new-style gang activity that spreads quickly and is highly concealed. Police aim to “nip risks in the bud” by striking early.
Since January, Guangdong police have taken down 8 mafia-style organizations and 226 evil-force groups. Provincial police reports and criminal case filings dropped 9% and 13.2% year-on-year, respectively, while gang-related police reports fell 39.02%.
(By Helen Mo, intern Xu Wenda)
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