Over 800 drug arrests in five months
Shanghai prosecutors announced yesterday that 869 people were arrested for drug offenses between January and May.
Of those arrested, 641 were charged with smuggling, trafficking, transporting and producing drugs, according to the Shanghai People’s Procuratorate.
Nearly 70 percent of the suspects were jobless and almost half were below age 40; the youngest only was 15. Roughly one in five suspects were women, said prosecutor Shou Zhijian.
New types of drugs, including those with analeptic and hallucinogenic properties, pose fresh challenges to prosecutors. Also, it has become increasingly hard to detect trafficking as more drug are shipped via express delivery and purchased via online platforms, Shou said.