A Chinese chemistry professor has been arrested for allegedly producing and selling restricted drugs worth millions of dollars to clients in the US, Britain, Canada and Australia, state-run media reported today.
Zhang, as identified by police, is an associate professor of Chemistry at an unnamed but "famous" university in Hubei province's Wuhan city.
He sold at least 193 kgs of methylone drug last year after discovering a gap in the market when he went to Australia as a visiting professor, state-run Xinhua news agency quoted police as saying.
Zhang was arrested on suspicion of producing and selling methylone, a psychoactive drug commonly used as a substitute for MDMA, or ecstasy, over the internet.
He founded a chemical company in 2005 ostensibly producing medical coating and solvent. He recruited staff to produce drugs and sold them through mail order overseas, police said.
Zhang's business came to light in November last year, when local customs agents checked overseas-bound parcels and found at least nine parcels from one mailer contained white powder.
The powder was found to be methylone, a psychoactive drug under heavy state restriction in China.
Commonly used as a substitute for MDMA, methylone can lead people to lose control over their behaviour and even cause death.
On June 17, customs and police raided Zhang's lab in Jiangxia District of Wuhan, arresting eight people and seizing around 20 kgs drugs.
From March to November last year, Zhang's business sold at least 193 kgs of drugs to buyers in Britain, Canada, the US and Australia, making Zhang millions of USD, police added.
