SHANGHAI -- A court in Shanghai Tuesday sentenced one person to prison for involvement in an online fraud case concerning epidemic prevention materials.

According to the Minhang District People's Court in Shanghai, the defendant surnamed Yan was sentenced to six and a half years in prison, and fined 50,000 yuan (nearly 7,200 U.S. dollars) for defrauding a victim by pretending he had masks for sale.

It is the first online fraud case concerning the epidemic prevention materials busted in Shanghai since the novel coronavirus outbreak.

Shanghai has strengthened crackdown on crimes related to the epidemic to safeguard people's rights and interests.