Nine drug dealers were sentenced Thursday for producing and trafficking fentanyl, an opioid pain medication, in north China's Hebei Province.

Two principal criminals, Liu Yong and Jiang Juhua, were sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve and life imprisonment, respectively, for the crime of selling and producing drugs, according to the Intermediate People's Court of Xingtai, a city in Hebei.

The court said they had manufactured and sold around 11.86 kilograms of fentanyl, nearly 3.4 kilograms of nordazepam, 41.9 grams of diazepam and over five kilograms of alprazolam.

Meanwhile, another seven defendants, convicted of illegally selling drugs, were handed jail terms ranging from six months to life imprisonment.

The drugs, drug-making raw materials and tools involved in the case will be confiscated, and all of the illegal gains will be confiscated as well, the court said.

Read more:

Infographic: Why is fentanyl dangerous?