Customs authorities in south China's Guangdong Province announced Wednesday they have arrested 29 suspects in a crackdown on red wine smuggling.
Huangpu Customs captured the suspects, who belong to seven smuggling gangs in Zhuhai, Dongguan, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, and seized 490 tonnes of smuggled wine at the scene early Monday.
Some 451 police participated in the raid, which was directed by the anti-smuggling bureau of the General Administration of Customs.
In March, using big data analysis, Huangpu Customs found four companies suspected of smuggling red wine through ports such as Huangpu, Gongbei and Guangzhou.
A preliminary investigation showed the suspects had smuggled nearly 2,000 tonnes of red wine from Macao and other places since 2011. The case involved an estimated value of 230 million yuan (about 34 million U.S. dollars).
The case is being investigated further.
