Chinese police seek drugs, find bear paws

Narcotics investigators in southern China were looking to make a drug bust when they pulled over a van and instead found 173 bear paws, an official says.

Besides the eight boxes of bear paws, the officers found four pieces of python skin — the longest was 16 1/2 feet — and a dead anteater, the state-run news agency Xinhua reported Monday.

The incident took place Sunday at a highway toll station at Fangchenggang, along the China-Vietnam border, Xinhua said.

Three men in the van, which was loaded with waste paper, were detained, as was a local paper factory owner. Xinhua said the men denied knowing about the hidden items.

Bear paws are a coveted ingredient in traditional Chinese medicine to promote stomach health, cure injuries and colds and build strength, Xinhua said. They also are considered a delicacy.