A gang suspected of the largest ever cash theft from an airplane in China have been arrested.

The four suspects are accused of stealing 333,000 yuan (US$41,060) from a plane en route to Guangzhou, South China's Guangdong Province.

They were arrested on November 10 and were seized along with the stolen cash.

Police say the four took flight MU5259 from Jinan, capital of Shandong Province, to Guangzhou on November 8.

On board, they discovered a passenger's hand luggage contained a large amount of cash and decided to steal it.

While the bag's owner, surnamed Shan, was distracted, they removed the money and replaced it with a portable computer and some magazines.

They sealed the bag with glue to buy some time before the owner opened his bag and found the money had been taken.

Shan got off the plane without knowing anything was amiss.

He did not realize the money was missing until one hour and a half later when he arrived in Dongguan, a city in Guangdong, where his company is located.

Shan immediately returned to the Guangzhou Baiyun Airport Public Security Office and told them about the theft.

Police began investigating on November 9 and tracked the four suspects down within just 28 hours.

Police arrested them in Wengyuan County, Guangdong Province, and recovered the missing money.

Police have warned air passengers to keep a close eye on their belongings as cases of on-board theft have been rising in recent years.

"Passengers are used to paying less attention to their belongings while taking flights since they usually think air travel is much safer than the bus," said a police spokesman.

(China Daily November 22, 2005)