Seven excess passengers were found hiding in the trunk of a coach on Yongjin Expressway in East China’s Zhejiang province, Feb 13, 2011. [Photo/Qianjiang Evening News]

Seven people were found hiding in the luggage compartment of a passenger bus on the Yongjin Expressway in Jinhua city, East China's Zhejiang province on Feb 13, 2011, the Qianjiang Evening News reported Tuesday.

The bus, with 43 seats, was discovered overloaded by a local traffic warden at a checkpoint in Jinhua during the return peak of the Spring Festival travel season.

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The officer's suspicion was aroused as the aisle of the bus was crammed with bags. "Luggage should be placed in the trunk below the carriage under normal circumstances," said the police officer. A total of 44 people were discovered on the coach and seven others were found sitting in the dark trunk among messy luggage, which stunned the police.

According to the driver surnamed Yao, the bus was not overloaded when departing from Southwest China's Chongqing municipality. He was stopped by hitchhikers several times during the journey and let whoever needed in, saying, "the more passengers, the more profit".

Police seized the bus and transferred the passengers to other vehicles. Yao received 12 penalty points on his driving license.