SHIJIAZHUANG - Three suspects have been detained in connection with an explosion at a Kentucky Fried Chicken outlet in North China's Hebei province two weeks ago, police said Friday.

Hebei police caught the three suspects around midnight Thursday, a spokesman with the provincial public security bureau said at a press conference.

In a preliminary interrogation, the suspects confessed they had triggered the explosion after a failed racketeering attempt, the spokesman said without giving details.

The explosion happened at 2:15 pm on August 7 at a KFC outlet in Renqiu city. No one was injured, but the deafening bang caused panic among the diners and a child was sent to hospital with temporary hearing impairment, he said.

Police are still investigating the case.