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yesterday

U.S. Sanctions 19 Linked to Southeast Asian Scam Hubs in Myanmar and Cambodia

The designations aim to choke off funding for scam hubs exploiting trafficked workers who defraud Americans.

Victims of scam centers who were tricked or trafficked into working in Myanmar, are stuck in limbo at a compound inside the KK Park, a fraud factory, and a human trafficking hub on the border with Thailand-Myanmar after a multinational crackdown on the compounds run by criminal gangs, operated by the Karen Border Guard Force (BGF) in Myawaddy, Myanmar, February 26, 2025. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo
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Washington, DC, USA - June 24, 2022: Exterior view of the Department of the Treasury Building (USDT) in Washington, DC.
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Overview

  • OFAC named nine targets tied to the Shwe Kokko complex in Myanmar, which operates under the protection of the previously sanctioned Karen National Army designated as a transnational criminal organization.
  • Ten targets in Cambodia were designated, including four individuals and six entities such as T C Capital, K B Hotel, Heng He Casino and HH Bank Cambodia.
  • Named figures include Tin Win, Saw Min Min Oo and She Zhijiang in Myanmar, along with Dong Lecheng, Xu Aimin, Chen Al Len and Su Liangsheng in Cambodia.
  • The designations block all U.S. property of listed parties, extend to majority-owned affiliates and generally prohibit U.S. persons from conducting transactions with them.
  • U.S. officials cite at least $10 billion in American losses from Southeast Asia–based scams in 2024, a 66% jump from 2023, with operations driven by forced labor, debt bondage and romance-investment schemes.