Four Britons arrested in China following drug bust

China, (Daily Mail), 12 July 2019 -  Four Britons have been arrested in an eastern China province, the British embassy said today, two days after Chinese police announced a drug bust there involving 16 foreigners.  

Police in the city of Xuzhou in Jiangsu province said on Wednesday that a total of 19 people were arrested in a drugs case centring on a local branch of a language school, Education First.  

Those arrested included seven foreign teachers and nine foreign students, police said. They gave no other details on specific nationalities or facts of the case.  
Swiss-based Education First, which operates a chain of language schools in China, released a statement this week acknowledging a suspected drug case at one of its branches in Xuzhou.  

It said the company was cooperating with police on the investigation and that employees found to be involved in wrongdoing would be dismissed.    Meanwhile BBC reported the four Britons, were among 16 foreigners, -seven teachers and nine students, who were detained last week after testing positive for drug use.  

Drug convictions can attract long prison sentences in China, or the death penalty in cases of trafficking.  

‘We are in contact with the Chinese authorities following the arrest of four British people in Jiangsu province, and are providing consular assistance,’ a spokeswoman with the British embassy in Beijing told AFP.