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A China's court has handed down death sentences to five top figures of an infamous Myanmar mafia to execution as Beijing maintains its campaign on fraudulent networks in the region.

In all, 21 Bai family members and associates were found guilty of scams, homicide, assault and various crimes, reported a state media document published on the court website.

The group is among a small number of organized crime groups that rose to power in the last two decades and transformed the poor isolated region of Laukkaing into a profitable hub of gambling establishments and red-light districts.

Over the past few years they shifted to scams in which thousands of illegally moved individuals, many of them Chinese, are ensnared, mistreated and forced to scam targets in criminal enterprises valued at billions.

Details of the Sentencing

Mafia head the patriarch and his offspring Bai Yingcang were among the several men given to execution by the court in Shenzhen. Another individual, Hu Xiaojiang and A fourth person were the other three sentenced.

A couple of figures of the clan mafia were received suspended death sentences. Five were condemned to life in prison, while nine others were handed prison terms varying from three to 20 years.

The clan, who commanded their own private army, set up 41 compounds to house their online fraud activities and betting establishments, authorities said.

Scale of Criminal Schemes

These illegal enterprises entailed over 29 billion local currency ($4.1bn; £3.1bn). These activities also resulted in the fatalities of six from China nationals, the suicide of an individual and numerous harm, state media reported.

The strict sentences issued by the judicial body are part of the Chinese campaign to remove the extensive scam operations in Southeast Asia - and issue a strong signal to further unlawful organizations.

Background of the Groups

These clans rose to power in the 2000s with the help of a military leader - who currently heads Myanmar's military government. The leader had wanted to support associates in Laukkaing after removing its earlier warlord.

Among the families, the this family were "the most powerful", the son before told official sources.

Back then, we was the dominant in both the government and military arenas," the individual said in a documentary about the clan, aired on national media in July.

In the same film, a worker at a their scam centres described the mistreatment he had experienced at the location: in addition to being assaulted, he had his fingernails yanked out with instruments and two of his digits amputated with a blade.

More Accusations

The son is among those who were given to execution this week. The individual has also been separately found guilty of organizing to traffic and manufacture 11 tonnes of illegal drugs, reports stated.

End of the Families

Their end occurred in recent times as political winds changed.

Previously Beijing has urged the regime to limit scam operations in the area.

Last year, the law enforcement released legal actions for the most prominent figures of these clans.

The patriarch, the clan's head, was included in the figures who were transferred to Beijing from the country in early 2024.

"Why is the state making so much effort to go after the groups?" a official said in the summer documentary.

This serves as a warning groups, regardless of who you are, your location, when you commit these terrible acts targeting the Chinese people, you will be held accountable."