The Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) seized a scam compound in the territory of junta-aligned militia group the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army (DKBA) in Myawaddy Township, Karen State, last Friday, according to sources on the ground.
The KNLA is the armed wing of the Karen National Union (KNU).
The DKBA’s top leaders were sanctioned by the US government on Nov. 13 for their involvement in scam operations.
Last Friday, KNLA and regime forces clashed near Min Let Pan, a DKBA-controlled village south of Myawaddy town near the Thai border, as junta forces advanced toward a KNU-controlled area in a bid to retake lost territory.
During the clash, DKBA troops based in Min Let Pan coordinated with regime forces to attack the KNLA, the sources said.
During the clash, some mortar rounds landed in Thailand, prompting the Thai army to fire a smoke bomb as a warning sign, according to Thai media.
While defending their territory, KNLA troops managed to break through and seize a compound where DKBA troops were stationed. Dozens of militia forces surrendered to the KNLA, a source said.
The KNLA forces soon discovered that the DKBA-controlled compound was a scam hub with more than 5,000 foreign workers from an estimated eight countries.
The KNU is reportedly taking steps to identify all of the workers discovered at the compound and is preparing to organize their repatriation.
Contacted by The Irrawaddy on Monday, KNU spokesperson Padoh Saw Taw Nee declined to comment on the seizure of the scam compound, saying only, “When the time comes, we will make a broad and public announcement.”
The DKBA split from the KNU in 1994. In 2009, many of its members rebadged to form the Karen State Border Guard Force (BGF) under the Myanmar military.
Chinese scam centers protected by the BGF and DKBA in Myawaddy Township have targeted victims all over the world. Last year alone, Americans were defrauded of nearly US$10 billion, according to the US government. The US Department of Justice on Nov. 12 announced the formation of the Scam Center Strike Force to crack down on transnational crime networks in Southeast Asia, including those protected by armed groups in Myanmar.
As part of the mission, the US sanctioned four DKBA leaders, while seizing websites used at a scam center in Myanmar. It has also deployed Federal Bureau of Investigation agents to work with Thai police to combat scam networks in Myanmar. The BGF and its leadership were hit by US sanctions earlier this year.
Following the US announcement of the new Strike Force, Myanmar junta and BGF forces last week staged what they described as raids against the notorious Shwe Kokko scam hub—which had until then operated under the BGF’s protection—arresting over 1,700 foreign nationals and seizing large numbers of mobile phones and computers used to commit crimes. But critics said the junta and BGF have repeatedly failed to arrest the high-level operators of the scam businesses they “raid”.
Both local and international experts have dismissed the raids as public relations stunts by the regime and BGF to deflect growing international pressure.
After being hit with sanctions, the DKBA last week also vowed to eliminate the scam operations in its territory within two months.
