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A Chinese court has condemned five leading figures of a notorious Burmese organized crime group to capital punishment as Chinese authorities maintains its efforts on fraudulent networks in Southeast Asian region.

Overall, 21 Bai family individuals and collaborators were convicted of fraud, murder, assault and additional crimes, reported a state media announcement posted on the judicial portal.

This clan is one of a few of syndicates that gained influence in the last two decades and changed the poor isolated region of the town into a wealthy hub of casinos and red-light districts.

In recent years they shifted to scams in which thousands of smuggled workers, many of them Chinese, are ensnared, abused and compelled to cheat targets in illegal activities worth billions.

Information of the Sentencing

Mafia boss the patriarch and his son the younger Bai were among the group of figures condemned to execution by the Shenzhen Intermediate People's Court. Yang Liqiang, Hu Xiaojiang and A fourth person were the additional punished.

Two individuals of the clan mafia were given suspended death sentences. Five were sentenced to permanent incarceration, while additional individuals were handed jail sentences ranging from a period of 3-20 years.

The clan, who commanded their own armed group, created 41 facilities to accommodate their digital scam operations and betting establishments, government stated.

Extent of Illegal Schemes

These criminal activities included more than 29 billion local currency ($4.1bn; £3.1bn). These activities also caused the deaths of several from China individuals, the self-inflicted death of an individual and multiple injuries, reports stated.

The strict sentences delivered by the court are part of the Chinese campaign to remove the extensive scam operations in South East Asia - and send a firm message to other criminal syndicates.

History of the Clans

These groups became dominant in the early 2000s with the help of a military leader - who is in charge of the country's junta. The leader had aimed to bolster associates in Laukkaing after replacing its earlier warlord.

Within the families, the Bais were "absolutely number one", the son before informed state media.

Back then, our Bai family was the leading in each of the political and armed circles," he said in a report about the Bai family, shown on official channels in the summer.

During the report, a individual at one of their scam centres recalled the abuse he had experienced at the location: in addition to being hit, he had his fingernails removed with tools and a couple of his fingers cut off with a tool.

Additional Charges

The son is among those who were sentenced to death this week. The individual has additionally been separately convicted of planning to trade and produce 11 tonnes of methamphetamine, official sources reported.

End of the Clans

Their downfall came in recent times as political winds changed.

Over a long period Beijing has urged the Myanmar junta to rein in scam operations in the area.

In 2023, the law enforcement issued arrest warrants for the key figures of these groups.

The patriarch, the clan's leader, was among the figures who were extradited to China from Myanmar in recent months.

"Why is the Chinese government putting significant resources to target the groups?" a Chinese investigator stated in the July report.

This serves as a warning individuals, no matter who you are, where you are, if you carry out these serious offenses targeting the nationals, you will be held accountable."