SHENZHEN police cracked down on an organized crime ring and arrested 149 suspects in March in a coordinated action with the provincial police authority and the Ministry of Public Security.

Total assets, including housing, land and cash, with a market value of 1 billion yuan (US$146 million) were confiscated, according to a police release Monday.

The criminal ring, headed by two men surnamed Chen and Wen, had committed more than 100 crimes in Shajing and Fuyong subdistricts, Bao’an District, from gambling, trading guns and ammunition, assaults leading to injuries and blackmail to prostitution and vandalism of public property, said the release.

Police set up a task force and started investigating the crimes after a scuffle led to one death in the district. After interviewing more than 100 victims and witnesses, and questioning and interrogating more than 60 detainees and inmates, the task force arrested all of the major ring members in an action that covered 26 cities in 12 provinces.

The criminal ring started out by amassing illicit income through gambling and expanded to other fields, such as operating scrap collection and recycling factories, as well as illegal gas cylinder delivery services, and monopolizing the disposable chopstick and tableware business and the beer supply sector using coercion.

To monopolize the disposable chopstick and tableware business, the criminal ring attracted customers with low prices and then forced rivals to exit the market. Once they had control of the market, they would raise their prices. If the buyers refused their products, they would coerce them with violence.

After they had amassed enough money, they became involved in real estate development by purchasing land plots at extremely low prices through blackmail and building apartments to sell. (Han Ximin)