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A Chinese judicial body has handed down death sentences to a group of leading members of an infamous Burmese organized crime group to execution as Beijing maintains its crackdown on scam networks in Southeast Asian region.

Overall, 21 clan individuals and collaborators were sentenced of scams, murder, assault and other crimes, reported a official report released on the court website.

This clan is among a handful of mafias that gained influence in the last two decades and changed the impoverished backwater town of Laukkaing into a profitable hub of gambling establishments and nightlife areas.

Over the past few years they turned to illegal operations in which many of illegally moved workers, many of them from China, are trapped, abused and obligated to defraud victims in criminal activities valued at huge sums.

Specifics of the Sentencing

Mafia boss the patriarch and his offspring Bai Yingcang were among the several individuals sentenced to execution by the judicial body. Yang Liqiang, Hu Xiaojiang and A fourth person were the remaining punished.

A couple of individuals of the Bai family syndicate were handed suspended death sentences. Several were given to permanent incarceration, while additional individuals were given jail terms ranging from several years to two decades.

The clan, who controlled their own private army, created 41 compounds to house their digital scam schemes and betting establishments, officials reported.

Magnitude of Illegal Operations

These criminal operations included exceeding 29bn local currency ($4.1bn; £3.1 billion). These activities also led to the demise of six Chinese nationals, the self-inflicted death of an individual and several harm, official sources reported.

The harsh punishments handed down by the judicial body are within the Chinese effort to remove the vast scam networks in Southeast Asia - and issue a stern signal to further criminal syndicates.

History of the Families

These families gained influence in the early 2000s with the assistance of Min Aung Hlaing - who currently heads the country's regime. He had aimed to support partners in Laukkaing after removing its earlier warlord.

Within the groups, the Bais were "absolutely number one", Bai Yingcang previously stated to official sources.

"At that time, we was the leading in each of the political and armed spheres," the individual stated in a documentary about the clan, broadcast on Chinese state media in July.

In the same film, a individual at a their scam centres narrated the harm he had experienced at the location: in addition to being assaulted, he had his fingernails removed with pliers and two of his fingers amputated with a blade.

More Allegations

The son is among those who were given to death this week. The individual has also been separately convicted of organizing to traffic and manufacture eleven tons of illegal drugs, official sources stated.

Decline of the Clans

The families' downfall came in last year as situations changed.

For years Chinese authorities has encouraged the Myanmar junta to limit fraudulent operations in the area.

In 2023, the law enforcement announced detention orders for the most prominent figures of such clans.

The patriarch, the Bai family's patriarch, was among the figures who were handed to Beijing from the country in recent months.

For what reason is the authorities making so much effort to target the clans?" a expert said in the July documentary.

The purpose is to caution groups, regardless of your identity, where you are, when you engage in these terrible acts affecting the Chinese people, you will face consequences."