More than 17,000 contract fraud cases involving 35.7 billion yuan ($5.5 billion) were solved by public security departments across China last year, the Ministry of Public Security said on Monday during a news conference.

Ministry spokesperson Li Guozhong released the latest figures on the crackdown on crimes that infringe on the legitimate rights and interests of individuals and enterprises.

According to Li, police found more than 21 billion yuan in about 8,500 cases of duty encroachment offenses and misappropriation of funds, and 1,256 criminal organizations illegally entrenched in key businesses including construction projects and the mining industry have been dismantled.

The results of a series of special campaigns against crimes related to intellectual property rights infringement and online illegal activities have also been revealed during the conference.

Last year, public security organs nationwide effectively deterred IPR infringements by detecting more than 21,000 cases related to such crimes and arrested about 32,000 individuals who were suspected of being involved in the manufacture and sale of counterfeit and shoddy goods worth about 18 billion yuan.

Regarding illegal practices and crimes on the Internet, police last year investigated more than 56,000 such cases and arrested about 80,000 people suspected in related crimes including infringement of personal information, telecom and internet fraud and cyberhacking.

Meanwhile, to mark International Women's day on Monday, the ministry also honored 300 female police officers as well as wives and mothers of officers who strongly support the work of law enforcement.

"Among the 2 million police officers in China, more than 280,000 are female officers, and they have contributed a lot to social stability and national security," Li said.

One of the honored women was Peng Taizhen from Lincang, Yunnan province. Peng lost her husband, who died while investigating a drug trafficking case in 1994, and Peng was left to raise their sons alone.

All of three of her sons became police officers after graduating from college. However, one of them, Zhang Ziquan, died in the line of duty while investigating an epidemic-related case at the age of 36 last year.

"She is indeed a heroine, and just like her, dedication and sacrifice from those police officers' family members are the lamp that lights up the darkness," Li said.