In a stark demonstration of its intensified crackdown on transnational organised crime, China has executed eleven people linked to criminal gangs operating out of Myanmar. The individuals, described as key members involved in sophisticated scam operations, were put to death on Thursday, according to official state media reports.
A Major Blow to a Multibillion-Dollar Industry
The executions follow a concerted effort by Beijing to cooperate with Southeast Asian nations in dismantling a vast, illicit industry estimated to be worth tens of billions of dollars annually. Scam compounds, often staffed by trafficked foreign workers, have proliferated in the lawless border regions of Myanmar, Laos, and Cambodia in recent years.
These centres are notorious for running complex online fraud schemes, including romance-based investment scams, targeting victims across the globe. Many workers, including a significant number of Chinese nationals, report being trafficked into these compounds and forced to conduct the scams under duress.
Sentencing and Crimes
The eleven individuals executed were sentenced to death in September by a court in the eastern Chinese city of Wenzhou. The Supreme People's Court in Beijing subsequently approved the sentences, finding the evidence for crimes committed since 2015 to be conclusive.
According to the Xinhua news agency, their crimes included:
- Intentional homicide
- Intentional injury
- Unlawful detention
- Fraud
- Casino establishment
Among those executed were members of the so-called "Ming family criminal group," whose activities were linked to the deaths of 14 Chinese citizens and injuries to many others. The report noted that close relatives were permitted to meet with the condemned before the executions were carried out.
International Context and Recent Actions
This dramatic action underscores Beijing's stepped-up campaign against what has been termed the 'scam state' phenomenon in Southeast Asia. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime estimates the globalised scam industry to be worth around $40 billion per year.
In a related development earlier this year, authorities arrested Chen Zhi, an alleged scam kingpin and head of the sanctioned Prince Group. He has since been extradited to China, signalling a continued focus on high-profile targets within these criminal networks.
The crackdown reflects growing international concern, with the UN warning in April that Chinese and Southeast Asian gangs are accruing vast sums through these cyber scam centres. The executions mark one of the most severe responses yet in a complex, cross-border struggle against a deeply entrenched criminal economy.
