A cargo ship carrying 80 cars was impounded by Mawei Customs Office of Fuzhou on Monday, suspected of smuggling second-hand vehicles.

The cars of brand name like Mercedes Benz and Toyota were cut into two pieces. They were found in nine containers when the ship was unloaded in the afternoon. Official seals stuck on the containers proved to be falsified.

According to officials with Mawei Customs, the goods were shipped from waters near the Philippines.

Fake documents were made showing that the freighter set off from the Haikou port to Mawei Port.

The ship was intercepted by sea patrols of Fujian Public Security on Saturday night.

At 7 PM that night, police learned of possible smuggling around Minjiang River.

At about 8 PM a steel-made cargo ship was spotted. It refused inspection and continued to move after being signaled by police.

Police surrounded the ship and forced it to stop.

A crack was jimmied on one container where cars were soon found inside.

The ship was then held until Monday when Mawei Customs took over the inspection.

There were more than ten people on the ship, most residents of Lianjiang County of Fujian Province.

The freighter, registered in Wuhan, was allowed operation only on domestic routes. Both the suspects and the ship have been seized.

"Import of second hand vehicles is forbidden in China," customs officer said.

(China Daily August 25, 2004)