NANNING - Police in South China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region seized 2.66 tonnes of heroin from a drug lab on Thursday morning.

Guangxi Police said a team of 30 soldiers were involved in the bust at an abandoned factory in Bobai County.

Eight people were detained, three of whom were injured. A haul of knives and explosives was also seized.

The maximum sentence for anyone convicted of selling or producing more than 50 grams of heroin is the death penalty.