Mainland police have detained almost 2,000 people in a nationwide sweep on a fake drugs network said to be worth 1.16 billion yuan (HK$1.42 billion).
The Public Security Ministry said yesterday that 24 large crime organisations had been smashed in the highly co-ordinated effort.
The raids, which took place on July 25, involved 18,000 officers from 190 cities cracking down on more than 1,100 illegal operations. They confiscated around 205 million tablets of fake medicine along with millions of knock-off trademark logos, packages and instruction manuals.
Some of the seized drugs falsely claimed to be able to cure illnesses such as cancer, hypertension, diabetes and skin disorders. The adverse effects of the fake drugs could prove fatal, the ministry said.
Some counterfeit medicines were even tainted with narcotics or hallucinogenic compounds which could lead to liver and kidney problems, or even heart failure.
The ministry said some fake rabies vaccines were found to contain only salt water.
The raids came amid a renewed wave of counterfeit drug production, despite ongoing efforts over the past two years to clamp down on the underground operations, the ministry admitted.