11 arrested in smuggled clothing crackdown

Chinese police arrested 11 people and closed down 300 warehouses in a crackdown on the smuggling of clothes in Guangdong, Reuters reported citing state media reported. Police claim to have dismantled a smuggling ring in Lufeng City, a southern coastal area of Guangdong province, seizing 140 metric tons of used, foreign clothing which was due to be reprocessed and sold in China. The crackdown, which began in October, led to raids earlier this month, when police confiscated and burned 120 metric tons of clothes. The authorities believe that smugglers are bringing the clothes in from Japan and Korea.