Chinese customs seize 5.3 tonnes of drugs since 2022

BEIJING, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Chinese customs officials throughout the country have investigated 1,037 criminal cases relating to drug smuggling since 2022, with 5.3 tonnes of drugs of various sorts seized, the country's top customs authority said Sunday.

In recent years, the scale of drug abuse has continued to decrease, Sun Zhijie, director of the anti-smuggling department of the General Administration of Customs (GAC), said at a press conference.

China is still facing a complex and volatile anti-drug situation, as drug smuggling and trafficking activities continue, Sun said.

In the first quarter of this year, 181 cases of drug smuggling were investigated, up 33.3 percent year on year, and 2.1 tonnes of various drugs were seized, 5.2 times that of last year.

The GAC will strictly crack down on drug smuggling with multiple special operations to resolutely maintain social stability and protect the safety of people's lives and health, said Sun.