Police in southwest China's Yunnan province have cracked a major illegal emigration case, catching one "snakehead" -- a human smuggler -- and 58 illegal emigrants from south China's Fujian Province.

The Chinese snakehead, surnamed He, faked passports and visas and planned to send 58 people from Fuqing City in Fujian to foreign countries via Kunming Airport and ground

transport terminals, Xinhua news agency reported.

The group planned to go to Britain via Myanmar and Brazil with the help of international snakeheads, local police said yesterday in Kunming, capital of Yunnan Province.

The illegal immigrants had paid the snakehead huge amounts ranging from nearly 19,350 to 30,230 US dollars. The investigation into the case is continuing, police said.