Police in Shaanxi province have busted an online gun sales network, nabbing 52 suspects and seizing 42 guns, a local newspaper reported on Friday.

The Public Security Bureau in Meixian county, Shaanxi, also seized more than 300 firearms accessories and more than 6,000 bullets, according to Huashang Daily.

The police received a report of a suspicious car in Xiayuan village on Oct 26 last year. When they were approaching the car, they saw a man run off carrying some guns, the newspaper reported.

A special team was established in the bureau, and found that the man who ran away had been involved in more than 3,000 online sales of guns and bullets. They then connected the case to a large online gun sales network, it said.

The exact amount of money involved has not been disclosed.

After a four-month investigation, the police uncovered the network's "working mechanism", such as how the suspects contacted each other and how many people were involved, which eventually led to their arrest, the report added.