China narcotics arrests on the rise

A total of 122,524 people in China were arrested over drug-related crimes in 2013, up 21.82 percent year on year, according to figures released on Monday by the Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP).

Senior SPP official Chen Guoqing noted a growing amount of drug products and illicit funds involved in these crimes, some of which also involved guns.

Chen said the value of the drug deals in some of the cases topped millions of yuan and the vehicles used to transport the drugs included high-end cars and yachts.

"There has been a trend for group drug crimes in recent years, with clear divisions among criminals in production, transportation and sales," he said, adding that some convicts returned to the drug businesses after serving time.

According to the official, while many cases concerned conventional drugs such as opium and heroin, more criminals are resorting to synthetic drug products. These new types of drugs usually contain multiple chemical ingredients and pose challenges to evidence collection and authentication.

Chen added that online drug deals and those involving multiple regions and countries are also challenging for law enforcement.

Prosecuting organs will focus on professional and repeat offenders and will hand down severe punishment for drug crimes involving trafficking, weapons, violence and organized international deals.