Photo: Screenshot from the official WeChat account of the Ministry of Public Security

Laos handed over 494 suspects involved in cross-border telecom and online fraud to China recently, marking another significant achievement in the joint efforts of the law enforcement authorities of the two countries to combat transnational telecom and network fraud, according to China's Ministry of Public Security (MPS) on Friday.

In a statement published on its official WeChat account, the MPS said that in an effort to crack down severely on transnational fraud and related crimes in accordance with law, Chinese police have maintained steady law enforcement cooperation with their Laotian counterparts. 

Since the start of this year, intensified anti-fraud campaigns in Cambodia have driven numerous scam dens and suspects to relocate and continue illegal activities inside Laos, read the statement.

Acting under bilateral police cooperation agreements, Laotian authorities launched a special operation and detained 494 fraud suspects, and the group was transferred to China at Mohan Port in Xishuangbanna, in Southwest China's Yunnan Province. Police forces from Southwest China's Sichuan Province and Chongqing have taken custody of the detainees and will proceed with legal proceedings, the MPS said.

Officials with the ministry stated that the public security organs will further deepen police cooperation with relevant nations, refine joint crackdown mechanisms, and keep sweeping criminal dens, tracking down masterminds and repatriating suspects. Efforts will continue to restrict criminal activities and effectively curb the rampant spread of cross-border telecom fraud, the statement said.

This year has witnessed fruitful results from China's joint anti-fraud campaigns with Southeast Asian nations. In a joint China-Myanmar-Thailand operation to dismantle gambling and fraud hubs in Myawaddy, Myanmar, Chinese police forces have escorted more than 1,500 criminal suspects back to China, marking a phased achievement in the cross-border crackdown, the MPS said in February.

The ministry said at the time that more than 630 buildings in the Myawaddy KK Park have been completely dismantled, and all related suspects involved in telecom fraud crimes have been escorted back to China.

Global Times