Two more people have been detained in Liaoning Province in connection with the sale of a counterfeit diabetes drug that killed two patients and left nine others in the hospital, provincial authorities said Thursday.

Chinese police earlier said that five other suspects had been arrested in Xinjiang in connection with the case, and an arrest warrant had also been issued for the prime suspect.

The drug, sold under the brand "Tang Zhi Ning Jiao Nang," was found to contain six times the normal dose of glibenclamide, which is used to help lower blood sugar. Two patients died after taking the fake drug in the far western region of Xinjiang.

Li Bing, one of the suspects, was taken into custody by police in Chaoyang City, where the authorities confiscated 1,025 bottles of the drug. Local police are investigating the source of the deadly medicine.

Wang Peng, an employee of a drug company, was detained Sunday in Shenyang, the provincial capital, allegedly for involvement in the sale of 345 bottles of the same drug. Police seized another 30 bottles from his home.

Wang told police he bought the fake drug from a man named Li Dong.

The Ministry of Public Security issued an arrest warrant Thursday for Li Dong, described by the ministry as the chief suspect. He was identified as Li Bing's brother.

Xinjiang police have seized 10,663 bottles of the fake drug and found another 2,093 destroyed by Qu Yurui, one of the five suspects arrested in the region, according to Xinjiang Food and Drug Administration.

The local police were trying to seize the remaining 1,644 bottles in circulation in Xinjiang, the administration said.

In addition to Liaoning and Xinjiang, the counterfeit drug has also shown up in southwestern Sichuan Province. However, no one has been reported ill after taking the drug outside Xinjiang.

Authorities have said initial investigations showed that the drug was not produced in Xinjiang, but they have so far failed to find its source.

(Xinhua News Agency February 6, 2009)