BEIJING, Aug. 19 -- Chinese police have arrested "nearly a thousand" suspected members of the illegal Quannengshen (almighty god) cult, according to the Ministry of Public Security.

The supects, all seized since June, are allegedly involved in more than 500 cases. Among them are nearly a hundred "high-level organizers and backbone members", a ministry statement said on Tuesday.

Five members of the cult have already been charged with intentional homicide for the killing of a woman at a McDonald's outlet in Shandong in May, when she refused to give her telephone number to them, allegedly as they tried to recruit new members.