But the junta’s military backer China has been increasingly irked at the number of its citizens who are both perpetrators and victims of the scams, experts say.
The junta on Wednesday blamed armed opposition groups for allowing scam centres to operate under their protection, but said it had taken action after wrestling back territorial control.
The Global New Light of Myanmar said the Yatai firm of Chinese-Cambodian alleged racketeer She Zhijiang was “the entity involved” in running the Shwe Kokko area.
She was arrested in Thailand in 2022 and extradited last week to China where he faces allegations of involvement in online gambling and fraud operations.
She and his company Yatai were previously under British and US sanctions.
Washington says he transformed a village on the Myanmar-Thai border into Shwe Kokkom, “a resort city custom built for gambling, drug trafficking, prostitution, and scams targeting people around the world”.
In October, Myanmar’s junta announced raids on nearby scam centre KK Park, where it says it is currently demolishing more than 600 buildings.
A highly publicised sweep starting in February saw around 7,000 alleged scammers repatriated and Thailand enact a cross-border internet blockade.
Scam victims in Southeast and East Asia alone were conned out of up to US$37 billion in 2023, according to a UN report, which said global losses were likely “much larger”.
Source: CNA
