Eleven jailed for selling toxic dog meat in China

Beijing, May 14 (IANS) Eleven people in China were sentenced to prison for allegedly selling poisonous dog meat, an official said Wednesday.

The verdict was handed down by the court of Dingcheng district in Hunan province Tuesday and the defendants were sentenced and also fined, Xinhua reported.

According to the court, since the beginning of 2013, the defendants killed about 1,000 dogs in the countryside with darts covered in highly toxic chemicals and stored the dog meat in a freezer.

Police caught the suspects and seized 12 tonnes of frozen meat last December.

Meat of approximately 10 dogs had been sold.

The poison was identified as succinylcholine chloride.

Experts said humans can be poisoned by eating large amounts of the affected meat.