Railway police busted the country's largest fake-ticket production racket on Monday, seizing 3,019 tickets that could have been sold for 720,000 yuan (US$92,300) and detaining four persons.

A police officer in Huaibei, Anhui Province, teaches students how to distinguish between fake railway tickets and real ones earlier this month.

Among the suspects are the gang leader and a woman.

Types by the hundreds, ink, razor blades, glue and other equipment used to print and prepare the fake tickets were also seized from the four-square-meter underground production unit in Guangzhou's Yuexiu District, a railway police officer said.

The smashing of the ring is a warning to others involved in similar rackets and should stop the sale of fake tickets, especially during the peak travel periods of Spring Festival and other national holidays.

But more importantly, it will stop desperate people from falling prey to fake-ticket sellers and help ensure a safe and smooth flow of passengers.

More than 350,000 passengers are expected to take trains from Guangzhou daily over the next couple of weeks to return home from Spring Festival.

Police formed a special task force on January 4 to track down the gang members and raid their base once they were informed of a possible ring operating in Guangzhou's Zhanxi Road near the railway station.

A special squad of more than 30 police officers raided the gang's production unit after gathering information and tailing the suspects for 20 days.

(China Daily February 1, 2007)