China's Ministry of Public Security is building an information database to document pyramid sales crimes, in an effort to crack down on inter-province and inter-regional pyramid sales, official said here Wednesday.

"The database will document everyone convicted of pyramid sales crimes since 1998, including their personal information and information of their sales activities," said Gao Feng, chief of Economic Crime Investigation of the Ministry of Public Security on a press conference in Beijing.

Gao said the database will allow the country's local departments for industry and commerce and the police departments to gain information about people engaged in pyramid sales around the country and reduce the crime.

China's State Council banned pyramid sales in April 1998, yet pyramid sales are rampant in some parts of the country, according to Gao.

Chinese police uncovered 1,499 pyramid sales cases during the first nine months 2006 involving 5.16 billion yuan (640 million U.S. dollars) worth of goods.

Source: Xinhua