(ECNS) –The Ministry of Public Security of China has arrested more than 57,000 nationals in a sweeping crackdown on telecom fraud operations based in northern Myanmar, targeting major crime families in the Kokang region, authorities said.
The campaign has devastated four key criminal syndicates, including the Bai family, which is now facing public prosecution.
The Bai syndicate, headed by Bai Saw Chain and Bai Yin Chin, has been linked to over 31,000 telecom fraud cases, resulting in six Chinese deaths. The group amassed more than 10.6 billion yuan ($1.46 billion) in illicit gains, ran gambling operations totaling 18 billion yuan, and trafficked around 11 metric tons of drugs.
Since 2015, the Bai family has used its political, military, and economic influence in Myanmar's Kokang region to build 41 large-scale gambling and fraud parks, according to authorities. The facilities were used to defraud Chinese citizens through online scams and illegal betting. The group also lured or coerced people from China to cross the border illegally and take part in the operations.
The syndicate maintained armed control over the fraud parks and allowed criminal investors to use violence, torture, beatings and even murder to punish scam workers who failed to meet quotas or tried to escape.
In November 2023, the Shenzhen Public Security Bureau in Guangdong Province led a special investigation into the Bai family. On Dec. 10, 2023, Chinese police issued a public bounty for the arrest of key suspects.
On Jan. 30, 2024, under the bilateral law enforcement cooperation mechanism, Myanmar transferred Bai Saw Chain and Bai Yin Chin to Chinese authorities. To date, 36 major suspects linked to the Bai family case have been apprehended.
(By Gong Weiwei)
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