China punishes 146,000 people for telecom fraud in three years

Chinese authorities have solved 315,000 cases of telecom fraud since a campaign launched in November 2015, with 146,000 people investigated and punished, the Ministry of Public Security said Thursday.

The ministry said 16,000 criminal gangs were busted and a large number of bank cards and phone cards were confiscated, with 4.74 billion yuan (about 682 U.S. dollars) worth of money and property seized.

Since the launch of the campaign, Chinese public security organs have cooperated with police in 34 countries and regions, destroying 216 dens and arresting 3,159 suspects, the ministry said.

In addition, the ministry has worked with the People's Bank of China to set up a mechanism to protect bank accounts from telecom fraud, successfully stopping more than 30 billion yuan from being paid to the suspects' accounts.

Public security organs have also worked with the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, local authorities, major telecom operators and Internet companies to fight against telecom fraud activities.