Five sentenced in south China for illegally making firearms

Five people in Guangdong Province in southern China have been sentenced to prison by a court in the city of Heyuan for making and selling firearms, reports The Paper.

The main defendant, surnamed Cheng, was arrested in May last year along with four of his employees.

The firearms made by Cheng and his employees are sold on China's e-commerce platform Taobao.com. [Photo: China Plus]

A police investigation found they were manufacturing powerful non-standard firearms.

Cheng has insisted that he was making toy guns, and that he had been legally granted a patent for the design.

The firearms made by Cheng and his employees are sold on China's e-commerce platform Taobao.com. [Photo: China Plus]

But the People's Court of Heping County found that the men violated China's criminal law and other legal provisions by making the guns.

Cheng has decided to appeal the verdict.