Chinese police crack real-life ‘Breaking Bad’ drug lab, arresting ex-chemistry professor
Por Fran Lu — South China Morning Post – News feed
Advertisement Trending in China People & Culture Trending in China Chinese police crack real-life ‘Breaking Bad’ drug lab, arresting ex-chemistry professor
Retired academic masterminds drug operation, designs process, uses personal connections to secure illicit lab space across 5 Chinese cities
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Fran Lu in Beijing Published: 10:00am, 10 Oct 2026
Police in eastern China recently dismantled a cross-border drug-trafficking gang that allegedly involved a retired chemistry professor and a master’s degree holder in producing narcotics.
The case went viral in China, where social media users dubbed it “China’s Breaking Bad,” after the American crime drama that aired from 2008 to 2013.
The series is widely regarded as one of the greatest TV shows of all time. In China, all five seasons scored above 9 out of 10 on the country’s best-known ratings site.
During a routine inspection of a pharmaceutical technology company in 2024, police in Shandong province noticed that it had bought unusually large quantities of six chemicals used as key ingredients in etomidate.
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