BEIJING — China on Thursday executed 11 people connected to criminal gangs operating in Myanmar, including key figures involved in large-scale telecommunications fraud, state media reported.
The executions followed death sentences handed down in September by a court in Wenzhou, an eastern Chinese city, according to Xinhua News Agency. The Supreme People’s Court approved the sentences after determining that evidence of crimes committed since 2015 was conclusive and sufficient.
Authorities said the crimes included intentional homicide, intentional injury, unlawful detention, fraud and the operation of illegal casinos.
Among those executed were members of the so-called Ming family criminal group, which Chinese authorities said was responsible for the deaths of 14 Chinese citizens and injuries to many others.
Telecom scam operations have proliferated in Myanmar’s border regions, where weak law enforcement has allowed fraud compounds to flourish as part of a multibillion-dollar illicit industry. The centers are often staffed by foreign nationals, including many Chinese citizens, some of whom have said they were trafficked and forced to participate in online scams.
China has increased cooperation with Southeast Asian governments in recent years to dismantle the operations. Thousands of people have been repatriated to China as part of joint law-enforcement efforts.
Xinhua reported that the relatives of those executed were allowed to meet with them prior to the executions.
