Five members of a major Burmese crime network, including two former militia leaders, have been sentenced to death in China for orchestrating large-scale cross-border scams.
A Shenzhen court in Guangdong Province handed down death sentences to Bai Suocheng, his son Bai Yingcang, Yang Liqiang, Hu Xiaojiang, and Chen Guangyi. Five others received life imprisonment, nine were given terms of three to twenty years, and two received suspended death sentences—meaning execution if they reoffend.
Former Kokang Border Guard Force commander Bai Suocheng and his son led a militia aligned with Myanmar’s junta. According to Xinhua, their organization built 41 industrial zones for telecom and online fraud, casinos, kidnappings, and human trafficking. Total damages exceeded 29 billion yuan, or more than 4 billion USD (3.72 billion euros). At least six Chinese citizens were killed in connection with their operations.
China’s strategic crackdown
Beijing launched a sweeping crackdown in 2023 on scam networks operating from northern Myanmar after thousands of Chinese citizens were targeted by online fraud. The Kokang region, dominated by ethnic Chinese groups, had long been a gray zone tolerated by China until the scams became a domestic outrage.
In September[1], eleven members of the Ming clan were also sentenced to death for running a similar scam empire. The trials, widely publicized by state media, aim both to deter criminals and reassure a frustrated Chinese public increasingly victimized by online fraud.
Myanmar’s role in global online crime
Northern Myanmar has become a hub for cybercrime, hosting thousands of people coerced into “pig butchering” scams—where fraudsters lure victims into fake investments before emptying their accounts. The infamous KK Park complex, near the Thai border, was recently raided and partly demolished by the junta. Over 1,600 people were detained by Thai authorities while fleeing these zones.
Geopolitical dimensions
China’s crackdown is as much about control as justice. It allows Beijing to project power beyond its borders and pressure Myanmar’s junta while maintaining economic leverage. Public executions of transnational crime bosses serve both deterrence and diplomacy, reaffirming China’s dominance in a volatile border region.
Whether these sentences signal a lasting shift or a political show of force remains uncertain. The cyber scam industry across Southeast Asia continues to generate tens of billions of euros annually. [ZATAZ News English version[2]]
