Amid the massive crackdown on online scams in Laukkai Town on the China-Myanmar border in northern Shan State, junta boss Min Aung Hlaing and Royal Thai Army Joint Operations Director Lt-General Jakkapong Janpengpen discussed cooperation in fighting online gambling and scams, especially in and around the border town of Myawaddy in Karen State, on Wednesday in Naypyitaw.
A China-invested new city project known as KK Park is located to the south of Myawaddy where the Moei River separates it from Thailand. Another China-backed new city project known as Shwe Kokko is located north of the town.
Padoh Saw Roger Khin, the head of the Karen National Union’s defense department and central executive committee member, attended the groundbreaking ceremony for KK Park in February 2020. It has become a hub of human trafficking and online scams in Southeast Asia since the 2021 coup.
Shwe Kokko, located just north of Mae Sot, is a notorious hub for online gambling, cyber scams and human trafficking. It is a joint venture between the Myanmar military-affiliated Karen State Border Guard Force – led by Colonel Saw Chit Thu – and Yatai International, which is owned by She Zhijiang, a Chinese national with Cambodian citizenship who is wanted in China.
There are concerns that Chinese citizen-run online scam syndicates will relocate to the Thai-Myanmar border amid the crackdown on online criminal gangs in Laukkai.
In August, China, Thailand, Laos and Myanmar agreed to set up a joint police operations center to tackle cyber scams in the region. On Oct. 10, China’s Ministry of Public Security announced that its “Summer Operation” had successfully brought back 2,317 scam suspects from northern Myanmar to China, The Associated Press reported.
Hundreds of Thai citizens were among the victims duped by offers of high-paying jobs, who were forced to work as online scammers in Laukkai. Thai authorities recently rescued them following negotiations with junta authorities.
A political and ethnic affairs analyst said junta boss Min Aung Hlaing has no intention of cracking down on the scam syndicates.
“Min Aung Hlaing is only talking the talk to please China as Beijing wants to root out online scams. China has issued warrants for the arrest of Bai Suocheng and Wei San, but the regime is blatantly protecting them because as they have influence over the Kokang Border Guard Force and [pro-junta] militias,” the analyst said.
“Min Aung Hlaing won’t bother to handle online scams on the Thai border. Saw Chit Thu is under the command of the Myanmar military. Min Aung Hlaing won’t arrest him,” the analyst added.
Chinese gangs involved in international crimes are behind the projects in Laukkai and Myawaddy, according to the Washington-based United States Institute of Peace.
Britain, the United States and Canada recently imposed sanctions against three individuals involved in Shwe Kokko, including Saw Chit Thu, for their alleged involvement in human trafficking in Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos.
