Thailand is preparing to issue arrest warrants for leaders of the Myanmar junta-allied Karen State Border Guard Force (BGF) on charges of transnational human trafficking, according to Thai media reports.
Citing Thailand’s Justice Ministry, Thai media reported that the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) will present evidence to prosecutors at the Anti Human Trafficking Division on Tuesday, seeking an arrest warrant for three BGF leaders: Colonel Saw Chit Thu, Lieutenant Colonel Mote Thone, and Major Tin Win.
According to Thai outlet Daily News, the BGF leaders are accused of involvement in the trafficking of Indian nationals who were forced to work in a call-center scam operating at a casino in BGF-controlled Myawaddy Township near the Thai border in Myanmar’s Karen State.
Thai authorities rescued the victims and are now targeting individuals in the trafficking ring.
Thai authorities also removed Police Major General Ekkarat Intasuep, commander of Inspection Division 5, and Pol Maj Gen Samrit Aemkamol, chief of Tak Province Police, from their posts for allegedly having connections to online gambling and scam centers in Myawaddy and failing to stem their cross-border activities.
Rangsiman Rome, a Thai MP from the opposition People’s Party, declared on Sunday that the BGF, led by Saw Chit Thu, is a co-investor in Myawaddy’s notorious Shwe Kokko new city project and rents space to online scam gangs.
The gangs have defrauded thousands of Thais and other victims around the world while trafficking and enslaving workers for their scam centers, the MP posted on Facebook.
He urged the Thai government to prosecute Saw Chit Thu for leading the call center operations.
Colonel Saw Chit Thu founded the BGF in 2010 after splitting from the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army (DKB), itself a splinter group from the Karen National Union (KNU). The BGF operates under the de-facto control of the Myanmar military, as outlined in the junta-drafted 2008 constitution. It recently rebranded as the Karen National Army.
Following the military coup in 2021, the BGF joined the junta in battling resistance groups led by the KNU in Karen State near the Thailand border, where it controls Shwe Kokko, a hub of online scams and illegal gambling.
The armed group announced a split from the junta in early 2024, but its leadership remains close to the regime.
Online scam centers have mushroomed near the border since the 2021 coup, with many relocating to Myawaddy after being targeted by the anti-regime Operation 1027 in northern Shan State last year.
The BGF’s Saw Chit Thu runs Shwe Kokko in a joint venture with Yatai International, owned by She Zhijiang, a Chinese national with Cambodian citizenship who is wanted by China.
The BGF’s involvement in Chinese-run online scams, illegal casinos and online gambling operations in Myawaddy was exposed by activist group Justice for Myanmar in May last year.
Last month, the BGF came under the spotlight again when the trafficking of a Chinese celebrity to Myawaddy made global headlines.
As pressure from China mounted, Thailand cut electricity, internet services and fuel supplies to five areas in Myanmar last Wednesday, including BGF-controlled territory in Myawaddy. The Thai government stated that the call-center gangs operating in these areas pose a threat to national security.
The next day, the junta and BGF jointly handed over 61 trafficked victims from seven foreign countries to Thai authorities.
Following Thailand’s cutoff, the regime also raided online gambling and scam centers in Mongyai Township, northern Shan State, arresting around 100 people including several dozen foreign nationals.
The DKBA, another Karen armed group, told media that it had rescued over 100 foreigners from several countries who were trafficked to online scam centers in Karen State and will hand them over to Thailand. Some of the victims were reportedly tortured by guards at the scam centers.
