Nation intensifies crackdown on telecom, online fraud

Chinese prosecutors and judges are ramping up efforts to fight telecom and online fraud, particularly cross-border activities, following significant progress in the past year, according to work reports from China's top judicial authorities.

The work reports from the Supreme People's Procuratorate and the Supreme People's Court were submitted on Monday for review to the ongoing fourth session of the 14th National People's Congress, the country's top legislative body.

Data released by Ying Yong, prosecutor-general of the SPP, revealed that approximately 69,000 individuals were charged with telecom and online fraud crimes in 2025. Among them, 285 people were prosecuted for offenses including fraud, intentional homicide and intentional injury against Chinese citizens under the protection of criminal gangs operating in northern Myanmar.

The SPC's work report said that in 2025, Chinese courts concluded 41,000 telecom and online fraud cases, marking a 1.2 percent increase from the previous year. Sixteen scammers from family-operated syndicates in Myanmar received death sentences, highlighting the commitment to punishing crimes against Chinese citizens abroad, said Zhang Jun, president of the SPC, while delivering the report to national lawmakers.

In September, a court in Wenzhou, Zhejiang province, sentenced 11 members of a criminal group from northern Myanmar, including Mg Myin Shaunt Phyin and Ma Thiri Maung, to death for multiple offenses.

The Wenzhou court revealed that the group leveraged its influence in Myanmar's Kokang region to form an armed faction and commit various crimes since 2015, including telecom fraud, casino operations, drug trafficking and organized prostitution. Their crimes resulted in the deaths of 14 Chinese nationals and injuries to six others, while total proceeds from gambling and fraud surpassing 10 billion yuan ($1.5 billion). The 11 criminals were executed earlier this year following the SPC's approval of their death sentences.

In November, a court in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, sentenced five members of another notorious syndicate in northern Myanmar to death for multiple charges. This group, led by Bay Saw Chain and Bay Yin Chin, used its influence and armed forces in the Kokang region to establish 41 compounds. Their crimes led to the deaths of six Chinese citizens and injuries to several others, according to the Shenzhen court.

Following the ruling, Bay Saw Chain died from an illness. In early February, the SPC approved the execution of the remaining four.

In China, death penalties issued by lower courts must be reviewed by the SPC, and execution can only proceed following the SPC's approval.

Yang Jianbo, director-general of the SPP's Law and Policy Research Office, said that since the launch of the special operation against telecom fraud linked to northern Myanmar in 2023, arrest warrants have been approved for 49,000 individuals and 47,000 of them have been prosecuted.

"This has effectively deterred cross-border telecom fraud offenders," he said.

Peng Xinlin, a law professor at Beijing Normal University, said that it is both reasonable and lawful for Chinese judicial authorities to punish criminals involved in cases linked to Myanmar.

"Regardless of the nationality of the offenders or where the crime takes place, if the actions harm the interests of China and its citizens and the act is considered a crime both locally and in China, with a potential sentence of three or more years under Chinese law, then China has the jurisdiction to prosecute," Peng said.

He further noted that telecom fraud, including online scams, is a crime in both China and Myanmar, and because these offenders have inflicted significant harm on Chinese citizens, the perpetrators can be prosecuted under China's Criminal Law, underscoring the legal jurisdiction.