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CHONGQING: At least six police chiefs of district-level bureaus have been detained for serving as "protective umbrellas" for local gangs, insiders said yesterday as a crackdown against mafia-style crime continues.

During the campaign, which started about two months ago, 1,544 suspects, mainly gangsters and business people, were detained by Aug 15, and the local government vowed to "uproot every protective umbrella for gangs".

The "protective umbrella", according to local police insiders, refers to corrupt officials or black sheep from the judicial system, including Wen Qiang, the once high-profile director of the Chongqing Municipal Judicial Bureau.

Wen was detained earlier this month over accusations that he protected gangs.

"As far as I know, 30 or 40 police officers have been detained for involvement in, or protection of, gangs," a senior officer with a district-level police bureau in the municipality told China Daily yesterday. The officer would not be named for safety reasons.

"At least six directors or deputy directors of district-level bureaus were detained," the officer said.

He said three of the six officers were detained a few minutes before the opening of a meeting organized by the municipal police bureau about the crackdown last week.

The wife of the deputy director of Yubei district police bureau reportedly committed suicide after her husband was detained for alleged involvement in a local gang that had monopolized the local pork market, the officer said.

The local newspaper, Chongqing Economic Times, reported on Wednesday that Wang Tianlun, a former member of the local Chinese People's Political Consultative Committee and general manager of Jinpu Food, a company with 1,000 employees and integrated swine slaughtering and pork distribution lines, was detained for allegedly using gangs to acquire 41 percent of the market.

Neither the city police bureau nor the related district bureaus would confirm for China Daily whether the police chiefs had been detained or how many there were.

The latest issue of China Newsweek, released yesterday, quoted sources close to local police authorities as saying 502 officers from local police bureaus, procuratorates and courts had been investigated in the crackdown by the end of last month.

An announcement published on the website of the municipality's human resources and social securities bureau on Aug 4 also said Chongqing is recruiting 591 officers this year to work for local police bureaus, procuratorates and courts, a move interpreted by the local media as the judicial system needing "fresh blood".

Questions:

1 In which Chinese city is the crackdown taking place?

2 When did the campaign begin?

3 According to one report a local official used gangs to tie up market share of 41% in which local industry?

Answers:

1. Chongqing

2. 2 months ago

3. Pork supply

Brendan joined The China Daily in 2007 as a language polisher in the Language Tips Department, where he writes a regular column for Chinese English Language learners, reads audio news for listeners and anchors the weekly video news in addition to assisting with on location stories. Elsewhere he writes Op'Ed pieces with a China focus that feature in the Daily's Website opinion section.

He received his B.A. and Post Grad Dip from Curtin University in 1997 and his Masters in Community Development and Management from Charles Darwin University in 2003. He has taught in Japan, England, Australia and most recently China. His articles have featured in the Bangkok Post, The Taipei Times, The Asia News Network and in-flight magazines.