Three people have been sentenced to death in China for running scam centres in Myanmar as part of a criminal network accused of telecommunications fraud, trafficking and murder.
Quanzhou Intermediate People’s Court in Fujian province named the defendants as Wei Huairen, Chen Dawei and Liao Jingfang. The court said they were members of the “Wei family criminal gang”.
Wei was described as one of the group’s leaders and was convicted of several offences, including murder. The syndicate was also involved in drug trafficking, organised prostitution and illegal casino operations, the court said.
At least two Chinese nationals were murdered in crimes linked to the gang, according to the court. Its operations generated more than 1.8 billion US dollars.
Three other members were sentenced to life in prison, while 55 more received prison terms ranging from three years and three months to 24 years.
Myanmar scam centres operated across 14 compounds
China’s state broadcaster CCTV said the gang ran 14 “large-scale” compounds in Myanmar and had attracted “thousands” of Chinese nationals with promises of high wages.
The verdict comes during an intensified crackdown by Beijing on cross-border scam networks operating across south-east Asia, where scam centres have developed into an industrial-scale business.
The International Organization for Migration warned in July that as many as 300,000 people work in scam centres across the region. Online schemes operated from the compounds have targeted people in Western countries, including many elderly victims.
Many of those carrying out the scams are trafficked foreign nationals who are forced to work inside prison-like compounds.
