A murder suspect has been caught in northern China after having plastic surgery to evade police.

The suspect, surnamed Zhang, is suspected of killing five people 17 years ago following a debt dispute, police of Weichang county in Hebei Province said Friday.

Last month, Weichang police received information about Zhang's presence in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province.

Zhang was using the identity of a man surnamed Yu, despite the annulment of Yu's household registration, police said

Zhang was later caught in his home with the help of Heilongjiang police.

Police found scars on Zhang's face that indicated that he had gone through plastic surgery.

Zhang confessed that he killed five residents in his village and severely injured another in January 2000.

The investigation is ongoing.