Chinese Courts Sentences Notorious Myanmar Fraud Mafia Figures to Death

One China's judicial body has handed down death sentences to a group of prominent figures of a well-known Burmese organized crime group to execution as Chinese authorities maintains its efforts on scam activities in the region.

In all, 21 Bai family members and associates were convicted of scams, murder, injury and various crimes, said a state media document posted on the judicial portal.

This clan is among a small number of mafias that became dominant in the early 2000s and transformed the poor remote area of Laukkaing into a profitable hub of gambling establishments and nightlife areas.

Over the past few years they shifted to scams in which many of trafficked people, several of them Chinese, are trapped, mistreated and compelled to cheat victims in criminal enterprises estimated at huge sums.

Specifics of the Judgment

Syndicate leader Bai Suocheng and his heir the younger Bai were among the group of individuals condemned to execution by the court in Shenzhen. Another individual, Hu Xiaojiang and A fourth person were the remaining convicted.

Two members of the Bai family mafia were given suspended death sentences. Five were given to permanent incarceration, while more figures were given jail sentences between three to 20 years.

The Bais, who controlled their own armed group, set up 41 facilities to accommodate their digital scam activities and casinos, authorities said.

Extent of Criminal Operations

Such criminal operations entailed over 29bn yuan ($4.1 billion; £3.1 billion). They also led to the fatalities of several from China individuals, the suicide of one and several injuries, official sources announced.

The severe penalties handed down by the judicial body are within the Chinese campaign to eliminate the vast fraud operations in the region - and deliver a strong message to additional criminal organizations.

Background of the Families

These clans gained influence in the recent decades with the help of a military leader - who is in charge of Myanmar's junta. The leader had wanted to prop up allies in Laukkaing after replacing its former warlord.

Within the families, the Bais were "the most powerful", Bai Yingcang before stated to official sources.

During that period, our Bai family was the most powerful in both the government and military circles," he said in a report about the clan, aired on national media in the summer.

Within that report, a worker at their illegal operations described the harm he had endured there: in addition to being beaten, he had his fingernails extracted with pliers and two of his digits amputated with a blade.

Additional Allegations

The son is included in those who were condemned to execution recently. The individual has also been independently sentenced of conspiring to traffic and manufacture 11 tonnes of methamphetamine, official sources announced.

Decline of the Clans

Their fall came in recent times as political winds shifted.

Over a long period Beijing has pressed the regime to control scam schemes in the area.

Last year, the law enforcement released arrest warrants for the leading individuals of such clans.

The patriarch, the Bai family's head, was included in the warlords who were handed to Beijing from Myanmar in recent months.

For what reason is the authorities making such extensive work to go after the clans?" a official commented in the July film.

This serves as a warning groups, no matter your position, your base, when you commit these terrible offenses affecting the nationals, you will pay the price."