China sentences 11 crime syndicate leaders to death for Myanmar scam ring

China has handed down death sentences to 11 ringleaders of a sprawling criminal network that orchestrated online scams, gambling operations, and human trafficking from bases in Myanmar. The verdict, pronounced by the Wenzhou Intermediate People’s Court, marks one of Beijing’s most aggressive crackdowns on transnational cybercrime.

 

The convicted include Ming Guoping and Ming Zhenzhen, son and granddaughter of the late Ming family patriarch, Ming Xuechang, himself killed during a police raid in 2023. Five additional defendants received death sentences with a two-year reprieve (likely to be commuted), and 12 others were sentenced to prison terms ranging from five years up to life in prison on charges spanning fraud, homicide, and drug trafficking.

 

According to court findings, since 2015 the syndicate, operating more than 300 “scam compounds” in Myanmar’s Kokang region, had amassed illicit earnings exceeding US$1.4 billion. The operation forcibly detained thousands of workers, mostly Chinese nationals lured by false job offers, and punished escape attempts with violence; at least 14 individuals were killed after resisting or fleeing.

 

The ruling carries symbolic weight: the Chinese government had long maintained certain ties with powerful family networks in Myanmar, particularly in the Yunnan border region. But growing public outrage over the scale of scams targeting Chinese citizens pushed Beijing to turn decisively against the syndicates.

 

Still, analysts say the crackdown may not dismantle the wider operation. Many scam hubs are relocating or switching to technologies like satellite internet to evade disruption. Meanwhile, in 2025, joint operations by China, Myanmar, and Thailand have already rescued more than 7,000 workers from such compounds.