A Chinese court has sentenced to death 11 members of a notorious family that ran scam centres in Myanmar, according to Chinese state media.
Dozens of members of the Ming family were found guilty of conducting criminal activities, with many receiving lengthy jail sentences.
The Ming family worked for one of the four clans that ran Myanmar's sleepy backwater town of Laukkai, close to the border with China, transforming it into a haven for gambling, drugs, and scam operations.
After a crackdown, the Myanmar authorities arrested many members of these families in 2023 and subsequently handed them over to Chinese authorities.
A total of 39 Ming family members were sentenced on Monday in the eastern city of Wenzhou, with the court report from Chinese state broadcaster CCTV detailing the sentences.
Besides the 11 who received death sentences, five were given death sentences with a two-year suspension, 11 received life imprisonment, while others faced jail terms ranging from five to 24 years.
The court revealed that since 2015, the Ming family and similar gangs had been deeply involved in telecommunications fraud, illegal casinos, drug trafficking, and prostitution, amassing over 10 billion yuan (approximately $1.4 billion) from their operations.
Estimates suggested that these family-run casinos processed billions of dollars annually.
The court's findings also implicated the Ming family in the deaths of some scam center workers, with reports of violent incidents aimed at preventing individuals from returning to China.
Initially developed to exploit Chinese gambling demand, which is illegal domestically as well as in other neighboring countries, Laukkai’s casinos evolved into fronts for money laundering, trafficking, and scam centers.
The Ming family had grown to become one of the most powerful entities in Myanmar's Shan State, overseeing scam centres that held at least 10,000 workers. Notably, the infamous Crouching Tiger Villa was a site where workers faced systematic abuse.
About two years ago, an alliance of insurgent groups launched an offensive, taking control of Laukkai from the Myanmar military. It is believed that China, which has considerable influence over these groups, gave tacit approval for this offensive.
Ming Xuechang, the family's patriarch, reportedly took his own life; captured family members were subsequently delivered to Chinese authorities, with some confessing their roles in the scams.
Thousands of individuals trapped in scam centres have also been handed to Chinese police. Through these harsh sentences, China is signaling its stance against cross-border crime, exerting pressure that has pushed neighboring Thailand to act against similar facilities.
Despite these efforts, scam operations have continued to adapt, with many now based in Cambodia, though their presence remains strong in Myanmar.
