'Online Scam Group' of a Different Scale... 2,400 Chinese Nationals Repatriated Daily

China-Myanmar Cooperation, Repatriation of Fraudulent Chinese Nationals
Collaboration Amid Rising Voice Phishing Cases
Detained and Threatened After Being Lured from China to Local Area

China repatriated 4,700 of its nationals who were involved in online scams in cooperation with Myanmar authorities.

Chinese nationals involved in Myanmar online scams repatriated to China.
[Photo by China News Network capture]

According to an announcement by the Chinese Ministry of Public Security on the 17th, the Public Security Bureau of Yunnan Province, which borders Myanmar, received 2,349 Chinese nationals suspected of online fraud from the United Wa State Army (UWSA), an ethnic armed group controlling northeastern Myanmar, on the 14th.

This is the largest number of Chinese nationals repatriated from Myanmar in a single day.

Recently, the UWSA mobilized police and soldiers in three jurisdictions under its control to raid more than 20 online scam criminal group bases. Including the Chinese nationals repatriated this time, 2,680 people were arrested, and over 6,500 mobile phones, computers, and other devices used in the crimes were seized.

Including this case, the total number of Chinese nationals involved in online scams repatriated from Myanmar has reached 4,666.

Last month, the UWSA also arrested 1,200 Chinese nationals involved in online scams and handed them over to Chinese public security.

Chinese nationals involved in online scams in Myanmar are being repatriated to their home country.
[Photo by China News Network capture]

In recent years, as online scams targeting Chinese nationals within China have surged in border countries such as Myanmar, China has launched large-scale crackdowns in cooperation with local authorities.

Chinese public security authorities estimate that at least 1,000 online scam groups operate daily in border areas between Myanmar and Thailand, mobilizing more than 100,000 people to carry out various online scams such as "romance scams" (a new type of fraud where perpetrators feign romantic interest on social media to exploit victims' goodwill) and voice phishing (a method involving calls impersonating investigative agencies to threaten victims and demand money).

Most of these scam groups are composed of Chinese nationals who lure other Chinese people to the local area with promises of high wages, then confiscate their passports and detain them to force participation in online scams.

Those who do not comply reportedly face physical abuse and harsh treatment, and in severe cases, even murder.

Chinese public security stated, "The cooperation with northern Myanmar authorities in cracking down on online scams has achieved remarkable results, with the number of online scam cases and victims in China in August decreasing by 24% and 20.5%, respectively, compared to the same month last year." They added, "We will continue joint crackdowns with local authorities in border countries to root out scam groups."

Meanwhile, Southeast Asian countries such as Myanmar, Thailand, and Cambodia are identified as global hubs for online scams.

The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) recently reported that hundreds of thousands of people in Southeast Asia are involved in international online crimes, with 120,000 and 100,000 people engaged in online scams in Myanmar and Cambodia, respectively.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.