Chinese police seize three tons of meth in tiny rural village

Drug raids in a rural village in Guangdong province, China have yielded three tons of crystal meth and over 23 tons of raw ingredients used for its production. In all, the police and military launched 109 separate raids on the tiny village of Boshe, population 14,000, arresting 182 suspects — more than one percent of the village’s total population.

Boshe is a notorious hot spot for drug making and trafficking, and it’s believed more than 18 drug cartels were affected by the arrests. The South China Morning Post reports that many villagers and farmers began to manufacture drugs in the ‘90s, and have for a long time been protected by corrupt officials. Over half the village’s prisoners were arrested on suspicion of drug-related crimes. The recent raids represent Guangdong’s largest drug seizure ever in terms of drugs and raw material seized, arrests, and co-operation between government units.