China Arrests 5 Men for Spreading False News Online, Xinhua Says
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Five men in China’s Hunan province have been arrested for allegedly spreading false information online in a blackmail scheme targeting government officials, the official Xinhua News Agency reported, citing local prosecutors.
The head of the group, Ge Qiwei, falsely claimed he was a news reporter and “blackmailed cadres with negative news,” Xinhua said. Ge confessed to the charges, which involved millions of yuan as he spread the use of the system to cities outside of the province, Xinhua reported, citing the Hengyang city prosecutors.