77 telecom fraud suspects returned to China from Fiji

Suspects in telecom and online fraud cases are brought back to China from Fiji at Changchun Longjia International Airport, Changchun, Northeast China's Jilin province, Aug 5, 2017. [Photo/Xinhua]

BEIJING - A total of 77 suspects in telecom and online fraud cases have been brought back to China from Fiji, the Ministry of Public Security announced Saturday.

It was the first time for Chinese police to bring back so many suspects from an Oceanian country.

The suspects are accused in more than 50 cases involving over 6 million yuan ($892,000).

On Sept 22, 2016, one of the victims in Northeast China's Jilin province was swindled out of 1.3 million yuan and committed suicide, which triggered large-scale investigations at provincial and state levels.

An illegal online gambling and lottery gang was soon revealed, directing to more than 200 suspects based in China, Indonesia and Fiji, with nearly 100 million yuan illegal gains involved. Victims were from over 20 provinces and municipalities across China.

Chinese police sent a team to Fiji on July 2 to work with local police. On July 18, they took action, destroying five dens, arresting 77 suspects and confiscating equipment, including mobile phones, computers and bank cards.

In the meantime, police busted eight dens and two technical teams, arresting 83 suspects in China.

In a separate case, the ministry announced on Friday that it had brought 143 such suspects to China from Indonesia. Another 10 suspects, who had been arrested, remained in Indonesia under investigation. Their cases involved more than 20 million yuan, said the ministry.