YANGON: A Myanmar ethnic armed group has arrested more than 760 Chinese citizens suspected of being involved in online scams and handed them over to China, its spokesperson said on Wednesday.
The United Wa State Army (UWSA) said it had arrested more than 1,000 people during raids in its territory near the China border, media affiliated to the group reported Tuesday.
Online fraud compounds have flourished in Myanmar’s borderlands, staffed by citizens from China and other countries who are often trafficked and forced to work swindling their compatriots.
China has repeatedly told the Myanmar junta and ethnic armed groups on its borders to crack down on the industry, which analysts say is worth billions of dollars a year.
“Among the arrested 762 are from China. We transferred them to China through our border gate yesterday,“ UWSA spokesperson Nyi Rang told AFP.
The other 300 people are Myanmar nationals and were currently being questioned, he said.
“We will release them after questioning,“ he added.
AFP has contacted China’s embassy in Yangon for comment.
More than 40,000 people suspected of taking part in cyber scams in Myanmar were handed over to China in 2023, Beijing state media said this year.
China is a major ally and arms supplier to the junta, but analysts say it also maintains ties with Myanmar ethnic armed groups that hold territory near its border.
Myanmar has been roiled by conflict between the military and various armed groups opposed to its rule since the army ousted Aung San Suu Kyi’s elected government in February 2021.
Myanmar’s junta chief recently made his first visit to China since seizing power and held talks with Premier Li Qiang on the civil war.
Local media in Myanmar reported this week that Chinese authorities had arrested the head of another powerful rebel group the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA).
Beijing said he had come to China for “medical care”.
