Recently, during a central online media interview activity, reporters visited Ruili City in Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province, to gain in-depth understanding of the effectiveness of Dehong Prefecture's procuratorial organs in continuously combating smuggling crimes.

**Company Evaded Over 3.2 Billion Yuan in Taxes Through Misrepresented Trade Methods for Smuggling Aquatic Products**

Lang Chao, a prosecutor from the Fourth Procuratorial Department of Dehong Prefecture Procuratorate, introduced that the procuratorial organs in Dehong Prefecture attach great importance to exercising prosecutorial functions to combat smuggling crimes. From January 2023 to August 2025, procuratorial organs throughout the prefecture handled 181 cases involving 442 individuals for review and arrest in smuggling crimes, accounting for 55.35% of economic crime cases and 62.60% of individuals under review for arrest. They handled 170 cases involving 445 individuals for review and prosecution in smuggling crimes, accounting for 45.09% of economic crime cases and 57.56% of individuals under review for prosecution.

From the perspective of suspected charges, cases mainly involved crimes of smuggling goods prohibited by the state for import and export, and crimes of smuggling ordinary goods. These two charges accounted for 92.87% of smuggling crime cases handled.

Among these cases, one involving enormous amounts and complex circumstances left a deep impression on Lang Chao. In this case, a certain company in Ruili City was primarily engaged in customs declaration and import business for aquatic products. From January 2017 to July 2021, during its operation of the aquatic products trading market, the company adopted misrepresented trade methods to illegally seek excessive profits, cumulatively smuggling 77,800 tons of 61 types of aquatic products including crabs and eels from abroad, evading taxes totaling 3.204 billion yuan.

In 2018, the company's general manager Wang established a new company and, together with Huang and Yang, similarly used misrepresented trade methods to smuggle 79,800 tons of 27 types of ordinary goods including betel nuts, tea, and salt-cured products from Myanmar, with the smuggled goods evading taxes totaling 44.08 million yuan.

**Procuratorial Organs Intervened Early to Guide Investigation, Multiple Individuals Sentenced to Three to Ten Years Imprisonment**

Lang Chao stated that during the handling of this case, Dehong procuratorial organs assigned experienced prosecutors to intervene early and guide the investigation, providing guidance on issues such as crime versus non-crime, distinguishing between different crimes, and whether ordinary employees other than company management personnel should be pursued as targets in corporate crimes. They provided accurate guidance, conducted multiple case consultations with investigative organs, promptly resolved difficult legal application issues, and strengthened the evidence foundation of the case, ensuring smooth investigation.

Meanwhile, the procuratorial organs combined the application of the lenient punishment system for confession and acceptance of punishment to strengthen asset recovery work, focusing on legal interpretation and reasoning work for criminal suspects, making them understand that actively returning stolen money and goods could result in lighter punishment according to criminal policy. They strengthened communication with defense lawyers to facilitate suspects' remorse, confession, and voluntary return of illegal gains. They combined investigation supervision work to enhance the effectiveness of asset recovery, dialectically handling the complementary relationship between "handling cases through supervision" and "supervising through case handling," guiding investigative organs to conduct asset recovery work effectively. During the procuratorial intervention phase, a total of 5.477 million yuan was recovered.

On September 4, 2023, the People's Court issued a judgment, sentencing the company to a fine of 30 million yuan for smuggling ordinary goods; sentencing Wang and three other involved personnel to imprisonment ranging from three to ten years for smuggling ordinary goods, with fines ranging from 30,000 to 1 million yuan; and ordering the confiscation of 5.477 million yuan in illegal gains to be turned over to the state treasury.

**Procuratorial Organs: Smuggling Methods Become More Concealed and Intelligent, with Relatively Independent Links**

Lang Chao introduced that through careful analysis of smuggling crime cases in recent years, Dehong smuggling cases exhibit the following main characteristics:

The objects of smuggling crimes show diversification, shifting from early prohibited items to high-profit goods. Various forms of "breaking down large quantities into smaller ones" in smuggling activities show an upward trend, including "surrogate purchasing" goods from duty-free shops followed by smuggling, and smuggling through "ant moving" and "personal concealment" methods, though these are often actually manipulated by smuggling gangs behind the scenes. These gangs have clear internal divisions of labor, displaying professional and occupational characteristics.

Regarding smuggling entities, there are signs of enterprise participation in smuggling crimes, with enterprise-based smuggling crimes accounting for a certain proportion. Smuggling methods continue to evolve and become more concealed and intelligent. Various links in smuggling crimes are relatively independent, with communication being singular and concealed. Principal offenders often do not participate directly but plan behind the scenes and remotely command, making it difficult to combat the entire chain.

Lang Chao stated that the complexity of smuggling cases poses significant challenges to procuratorial personnel's overall grasp, coordinated operations, and ability to handle complex evidence systems. During case handling, Dehong procuratorial organs persist in comprehensively and accurately implementing the criminal policy of balancing leniency and severity. For ringleaders of smuggling criminal groups, principal offenders, and repeat offenders with serious social harm, they resolutely pursue strict punishment according to law. For first-time offenders, occasional offenders, and smuggling crime personnel with relatively minor criminal circumstances and lesser social harm, they actively guide criminal suspects and defendants to confess and accept punishment, playing the educational role of "leniency."

During case handling, Dehong procuratorial organs focus on coordination, cooperation, and checks and balances with customs anti-smuggling departments, public security organs, and judicial organs, fully leveraging the important role of early legal intervention, jointly exploring and resolving difficulties and doubts in smuggling cases, ensuring high-quality and effective prosecution of crimes.

"Dehong procuratorial organs will always maintain high pressure in the anti-smuggling struggle, benchmarking national and Yunnan Province deployment requirements for anti-smuggling work and Dehong Prefecture's economic and social development goals, precisely combating various smuggling crimes, and resolutely safeguarding national security and border security," Lang Chao said.