BEIJING, Jan. 3 (Xinhua) -- Chinese police investigated more than 12,900 tax-related cases involving roughly 150 billion yuan (around 23 billion U.S. dollars) in 2020, the Ministry of Public Security said on Sunday.

China launched a national crackdown on tax-related offenses in over 100 major cities across the country in 2020, targeting illegal acts involving the fraudulent use of preferential tax policies and defrauding export tax rebates, among other violations.

Police in 19 provincial-level regions busted 50 syndicates implicated in tax-related crimes perpetrated through the misuse of tax reduction and exemption policies amid the COVID-19 pandemic, arresting over 790 suspects in last year's operations, the ministry said.

Police will maintain a tough stance against tax-related offenses and provide a strong guarantee for economic and social development and business environment, the ministry said.