Anti-triad crackdown in Shanxi province nets Chinese lawmakers among nearly 900 people arrested

Chinese police have arrested nearly 900 suspected members of 150 organised crime gangs, including lawmakers – all from the same province – so far this year, mainland media has reported.

The detentions in Shanxi province are part of a crackdown on triads.

Xinhua reported on Monday that local police had solved 1,028 criminal cases so far this year, and arrested 869 suspects, including 27 provincial-level lawmakers, members of the provincial political consultative committee and other low-rank officials.

The report quoted a local public security bureau spokesman as saying that criminals infiltrating the province’s key industries had been “efficiently battered and punished”.

The spokesman was also quoted as saying that reports of crimes in suburban areas and coal mining districts had been cut by half.

A village chief in Yuncheng city, identified only by his surname, Li, was arrested over his alleged involvement in seven different crimes, including the illegal occupation of farmland.