China had 53 suspects of economic crimes repatriated from abroad in 2005 with the help of international police bodies and foreign governments, the Chinese Ministry of Public Security said Tuesday in Beijing.

To curb the trend of increasing numbers of criminal suspects fleeing abroad, the Chinese police have strengthened cooperation with their foreign counterparts, and the efforts have paid off, a police officer said.

Since 1993, more than 230 Chinese criminal suspects had been repatriated from more than 30 countries and regions, with the help of the Interpol, the world police body, police figures show.

But observers said they represent just a fraction of the suspects who have sought refuge overseas. Police statistics show that in 2004 there were 500 suspects wanted for economic crimes on the run in foreign countries. They're accused of embezzling more than 70 billion yuan (875 million U.S. dollars). Since 1993, China has signed extradition treaties with more than 20 countries.

China is also working with Canada to bring back Lai Changxing, the leading suspect in China's most notorious smuggling case involving 10 billion U.S. dollars. For years Lai has been trying to gain refuge status in Canada.

Source: Xinhua