China Executes 11 Members of Notorious Mafia Family from Myanmar
China has swiftly executed 11 members of an organised crime family from north-eastern Myanmar, who were sentenced to death in September, in a move that underscores Beijing’s zero-tolerance approach to cross-border criminal activity.
China carries out more executions than any other country, according to human rights groups, though official figures are treated as state secrets. While most executions target corruption, the crimes attributed to the Ming family were far more severe.
The Ming, Bau, Wei, and Liu clans have controlled the remote border town of Laukkaing in Myanmar’s impoverished Shan state since 2009. They rose to power after Myanmar’s military, led by General Min Aung Hlaing, drove out the ethnic insurgent MNDAA, which had dominated the region since the 1980s.
Once in power, the families shifted from traditional opium and methamphetamine production to casinos and online scams. They maintained close ties with the Myanmar military; in December 2021, following his coup, Min Aung Hlaing publicly honoured Liu Zhengxiang, patriarch of the Liu clan, for his “extraordinary contributions to state development.” The families also had candidates in the military-backed USDP party.
The scam compounds run by the families were notorious for brutality. Tens of thousands of mainly Chinese workers were lured with promises of high-paying jobs, only to find themselves imprisoned and forced to operate “pig-butchering” scams, targeting mostly Chinese victims. Complaints from victims and relatives of those trapped in these compounds spread widely on social media.
The most infamous compound, Crouching Tiger Villa, operated by the Ming family, became particularly notorious after an apparent escape attempt in October 2023 resulted in the deaths of several Chinese nationals, prompting action from Chinese authorities.
During a joint operation, the MNDAA and its allies recaptured Laukkaing with China’s apparent blessing, detaining the heads of the four families and handing over more than 60 relatives and associates to Chinese police. Ming Xuechang, the family patriarch, reportedly killed himself after capture. Interrogations revealed extreme violence, including the deliberate killing of random victims to demonstrate power.
Details of these abuses were publicised by China to justify the executions. Five members of the Bau family remain on death row, while trials for the Wei and Liu families are ongoing.
The four families, all ethnic Chinese, had close ties to officials in Yunnan. Their crimes were too close to home for Beijing, making the crackdown the most decisive yet. China has also persuaded Thailand and Cambodia to extradite Chinese business figures accused of running scam empires, including She Zhijiang in Myanmar’s Karen State and Chen Zhi of Cambodia’s Prince Group. Tens of thousands of Chinese nationals involved in scams have been repatriated to face trial.
Despite these efforts, the scam business continues to adapt, with operations still thriving in Cambodia and moving to new areas in Myanmar, even as major scam complexes like KK Park and Shwe Kokko on the Thai-Myanmar border have been shut down. (Agencies)
