China state TV airs first episode of northern Myanmar fraud crackdown documentary

The first episode of a three-part documentary on the crackdown on telecom fraud in northern Myanmar aired on CCTV on the evening of October 5. IT Home, citing CCTV News, reported that 《缅北电诈覆灭纪实》, jointly produced by the Ministry of Public Security and China Media Group, runs from October 5 to 7 at 18:00 on CCTV's comprehensive channel, with a rebroadcast at 21:30 on the news channel. Xinhua listed the title and date earlier the same day, and China News Service reported that the opening episode, 《利剑出鞘》, was broadcast that evening. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]

China News Service said the episode exposed the fraud ecosystem in northern Myanmar, describing long-running armed rule in the region as a hotbed for black and gray industries and saying parks emerged within a few years, with entrenched forces using the claim that northern Myanmar was “full of gold” to lure Chinese citizens into crossing the border illegally. It cited the account of a victim identified as Tang Moufeng, who it said entered a fraud park in 佤邦 in 2021, was forced to sign an IOU for 70,000 yuan after poor results, was resold between parks and beaten daily. In a quoted remark, he said those held were called “piglets” and that life in the park was “hell”; China News Service said the company later proposed selling one of his kidneys to settle the debt, and that he was taken to a farmyard for surgery after a match was confirmed. [ 3 ]

The report said 佤邦, which borders Pu'er in Yunnan, was the main source of the fraud industry, and that at its peak the 勐波 area alone had 265 fraud dens with nearly 60,000 people involved. It named Bao Yanban, a former head of 勐波 county and construction minister in 佤邦, and He Chuntian, a former head of 勐能 county, saying groups operated with their protection. To keep large amounts of cash from going mouldy, China News Service said, Bao Yanban routinely dried money on his roof and in his yard, and it quoted a group member identified as Guo Mouhe saying a gate guard stole more than 10 million from a warehouse without Bao noticing. The report said his wife, Chen Yukang, bought multiple luxury homes and cars in China and that their children attended bilingual and foreign schools with bodyguards, drivers and nannies. [ 3 ]

According to China News Service, a nationwide campaign described as “must fight, fight thoroughly, uproot, zero tolerance” began in early summer 2023, and after 佤邦 and Kokang remained unrepentant the front command abandoned negotiations and moved to enforcement, arresting suspects inside China when it could not act abroad. On the night of September 26, 2023, Yunnan and Zhejiang police arrested Bao Junfeng, described as deputy commander of the 佤邦联合军 and commander of its 318 brigade, in Kunming, seizing jewellery, watches and luxury cars, the report said; the then head of the Lincang public security bureau, Zhang Qingxing, was quoted saying the arrest opened a gap in the wider situation. On October 1, 2023, at 03:00, police detained Wei Qingtao and Liu Zhengqi of the “four big families” at a hotel at the Nansan port in Lincang in an operation lasting about ten minutes, and on October 14, 2023, 佤邦 began clearing scam parks and handed 2,349 fraud workers to Chinese police, it said. [ 3 ]

The report said the next turn came with gunfire in 果敢老街. It said the 明学昌 family, learning of inspections of scam parks, claimed on October 19, 2023 that it would send home detainees who wanted to leave but instead moved people out of the 卧虎山庄 park, and that those being moved by armed escort tried to flee when they realised they were not being repatriated. A survivor identified as Yan Mou was quoted describing being shot and bleeding from the shoulder; China News Service said that early on October 20, 2023, militias at two parks controlled by the Ming family suppressed the fleeing detainees, leaving four dead and four injured, and it quoted Ming Zhenzhen saying the family wanted to keep the matter from escalating. [ 3 ]

The documents do not state any charges, trials or verdicts for the people named, do not say whether the figures cited in the documentary have been independently verified, and give no contents for episodes two and three beyond IT Home's titles and its summary that the series covers the removal of groups including the “four big families”. [ 2 , 3 ]