Combatting Telecom fraud: NDSC Information Team Leader outlines crackdown

NDSC Information Team Leader Ma-J Gen Zaw Min Tun informed citizens and the media about the ongoing efforts to crack down on online gambling activities in the Myawady area, as well as the cooperation being carried out with international partners.

He outlined outlines international cooperation in combatting telecom fraud and online gambling in the Myawady Region including the operation of security forces together with departmental teams conducted in the Shwe Kokko area, located to the north of Myawady, 346 foreign nationals currently under scrutiny were arrested, blocking and apprehending individuals attempting to flee across the border, three areas within this zone where online gambling operations have been active such as  KK Park area located to the south of Myawady, the Shwe Kokko area located to the north of Myawady, and Chongkhaed area  lies at the southernmost end. In the KK Park area, the main entities involved are the Mulaei Alin Company and the Tran-Asia International Holding Group (Thailand).

In the Shwe Kokko area, the entity involved is the Myanmar Yatai International Holding Group Company. In the Chongkhaed area, the Chongkhaed Garden Resort Company is involved. The foreign nationals involved in online gambling and telecom fraud operations arrived in these areas.

Roughly 99.5 per cent of those foreign nationals engaged in online scams entered Myanmar through the neighbouring country. In those areas, ethnic armed organizations (EAOs) and groups such as the KNU, the KNLA, some EAOs that are signatories to the NCA, as well as groups operating under the name of border guard forces, have been active.

In the first area where the territorial clearance and Administration began – KK Park to prevent any chance of online gambling operations re-establishing themselves. To achieve that, 100 per cent of the buildings in that area were destroyed. Machinery was used to demolish structures, and some high-level explosive demolitions were also conducted.

Regarding these demolitions, the neighbouring country has raised objections, saying that debris had fallen inside their territory. There are video records documenting these actions. Those records have already been shown, through video evidence that the debris did not fall into their territory.

During that demolition, it was also clearly observable that no debris fell into their territory, not even into the river that forms the boundary between the two countries. Based on this, the operations to demolish and clear structures in the area are being continued.

The NDSC Information Team Leader added that another point is that the United States issued a statement dated 12 November. This is the statement we came across today. In this statement, it says that the United States has formed the District of Columbia Centre.

Strike Force (SCSF) to protect the US against telecom fraud schemes. When the announcement was examined, it’s found that it states the strike force was established to safeguard the United States from cyber-fraud activities, including cryptocurrency-related scams, based mainly in Southeast Asian countries.

There are some notable phrases in the statement that it’s needed to point out. One unusual phrase appears in the third paragraph, where it alleges that transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) operating through China are using cryptocurrency investments, fraudulent schemes, and various types of deception to steal the savings and livelihoods of Americans daily.

Another section claims that scam centers are enriching “Chinese criminal networks” across generations by funneling money from the United States into their pockets. It also mentions Myanmar, stating that a group called Strike Force Burma carried out operations against two scam centers in Myanmar.

As for how they conducted those operations – or whether they actually did . There has also been no evidence of such operations on the ground. The statement further claims that FBI agents were sent to Bangkok to work with the Royal Thai Police War Room Task Force to help dismantle fraud hubs in Myanmar, including places like KK Park. What it is presenting here is taken directly from their two-page statement.

When these points are analyzed, it’s assessed that, rather than simply focusing on combating online fraud and online gambling – as they claim – the country may have a deeper hidden agenda behind these actions. As for Myanmar, in the northeastern Laukkai region, China–Myanmar Joint Task Force was formed to address online gambling and telecom fraud operations, and it is continue to implement those measures.

In addition, in Kayin State’s Myawady area, the Myanmar-Thailand-China Trilateral Cooperation mechanism has been established, and that cooperation is still ongoing. On 14 November 2025, Myanmar delegation attended the six-nation meeting held in Kunming, China, where China, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam discussed joint efforts to combat telecom fraud.

Myanmar is also cooperating with this group. What’d like to emphasize here is that telecom fraud and online gambling do not harm only Myanmar. These crimes also target people from many countries around the world – anyone who can be deceived.

As a matter of national responsibility, Acting President of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar and Commander-in-Chief of Defence Services Senior General Min Aung Hlaing has instructed that these crimes must be addressed firmly.

He has also spoken clearly about this during public meetings. This is a serious issue. Therefore, we urge all Myanmar citizens and all media organizations: if you receive any information related to telecom fraud or online gambling, please report it to the relevant authorities.

Let us work together to confront this problem. The Government of Myanmar also want to state that the country will continue cooperating with the six-nation joint task forces and regional mechanisms to eliminate telecom fraud and online gambling operations from Myanmar’s territory and will work to root out these activities entirely.