Guangdong police bust illegal border crossings, gangs

Police across Guangdong province have detained a total of 1,262 suspects, plus another 4,463 stowaways, after cracking down on 378 cases involving illegal border crossing in the first half of the year.

According to Lin Weixiong, deputy director-general of Guangdong Provincial Department of Public Security, the crackdown jointly launched by Guangdong police and their Hong Kong counterparts has dealt a heavy blow to the illegal events in the waters of Guangdong province, Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions.

"Meanwhile the crackdown on illegal border-crossing cases has helped fill loopholes in pandemic prevention and control and build a strong protective screen against imported COVID-19 cases in the province," Lin made the remarks at a news conference in the Guangdong provincial capital on Thursday.

Previously, some people who sneaked into the mainland from Guangdong province, known as the southern gateway of the country, had tested positive for novel coronavirus, increasing the pressure on mainland fighting against the pandemic.

Some criminal gangs that used to be active in the province have also been busted following the crackdowns, he said.

Lin promised police from Guangdong would further expand cooperation and exchanges with Hong Kong and Macao counterparts to fight against illegal border crossings in coming months.

"And priorities will be given to fight against criminal gangs that have long been active in the southern Chinese region, their gang heads and snakeheads," he said.

Authorities said Guangdong, which has a long coastline, has been one of the main battlefields in the country to fight against the illegal activities involving in stealing across the borders and smuggling.