Nearly 1,600 detained in scam raids in Myanmar

ISTANBUL

Myanmar arrested as many as 1,590 foreign nationals during operations targeting centers involved in online fraud activities along the Myanmar-Thailand border, the junta-run Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper reported on Sunday.

The army conducted operations between Nov. 18 and 22 in the gambling and fraud hub Shwe Kokko. A total of 1,590 foreign nationals who entered Myanmar illegally were held.

The authorities also seized 2,893 computers, 21,750 mobile phones, 101 Starlink satellite receivers, 21 Routers and a large number of industrial materials used in the online fraud and gambling activities.

The arrested individuals were from various countries, including China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Ethiopia, Namibia, Indonesia, Uganda, India, Zimbabwe, the Philippines, Pakistan, Rwanda, Kenya, Nigeria, Nepal, South Korea, Egypt, and Madagascar.

Since the 2021 coup, which triggered a civil war in Myanmar, scam hubs have spread across the country's poorly regulated border regions.