Camilla Jessen
Court orders deaths over ‘especially vile’ scam crimes.
China has executed 11 members of the Ming family, a mafia-style group accused of running scam and gambling operations in Myanmar’s Kokang region, according to Chinese state media.
The compounds were presented as business parks but functioned as centers for cyber fraud, gambling, prostitution and drug production.
Victims were reportedly recruited through fake job offers, trafficked across borders and held against their will. Those who tried to escape were beaten, tortured or killed, according to UN accounts cited by international media.
A 2023 United Nations report said up to 120,000 people were trafficked into forced labor in such centers, while the US Institute of Peace estimated global losses of more than $43 billion annually.
Brutal conditions
Human rights experts told the UN that trafficked workers were subjected to “torture, ill treatment, severe violence and abuse including beatings, electrocution, solitary confinement and sexual violence.”
The compounds operated in areas beyond Myanmar government control, protected by militia groups aligned with the ruling junta, the BBC reported. The Ming family was one of four dominant clans in the region, alongside the Bai, Wei and Liu families.
‘Especially vile’ crimes
On January 29, Chinese authorities confirmed the executions after convictions for crimes including “intentional homicide, intentional injury, unlawful detention, fraud, and casino establishment.”
The court said the death sentences reflected the “especially vile” nature of the offenses. CNN reported that those executed included Ming Guoping, son of family patriarch Ming Xuechang, and Ming Zhenzhen, his granddaughter. Xinhua said relatives were allowed final visits before the executions.
Beijing’s crackdown
The executions follow a broader campaign against overseas crime networks. Chinese state media says more than 53,000 suspects have been handed over by Myanmar since mid-2023.
NDTV reported Chinese officials linked the Ming group to the deaths of at least 14 Chinese nationals. After the executions, China’s foreign ministry said it would intensify efforts to “eradicate the scourge of gambling and fraud.”
Other families remain under investigation, while criminal networks have shifted operations elsewhere, including areas near Myanmar’s border with Thailand, according to the Associated Press.
Sources: Xinhua, CNN, BBC, United Nations, US Institute of Peace, NDTV, Associated Press
