41 h. ago Mysterious case of Belarusian model ‘murdered’ at Myanmar scam centre

Thai authorities say she left the country voluntarily

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3 d. ago Thousands detained as Myanmar military raids notorious KK park scam compound

Myanmar's military moved in to tackle a major online scam operation near the Thailand border, state media reportedMyanmar’s military has raided a major online scam operation near the border with Thailand, detaining more than 2,000 people and seizing dozens of Starlink satellite internet terminals, state media has reported.According to a report in Monday’s Myanma Alinn newspaper, Myanmar’s army raided KK Park, a well-documented cybercrime centre, as part of operations starting in early September to suppress online fraud, illegal gambling, and cross-border cybercrime. Continue reading...

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1 week ago The Guardian view on the online scam industry: authorities must not forget that perpetrators are often victims too | Editorial

A lucrative sector is spreading fast as criminal enterprises force abused and trafficked workers to cheat othersA Chinese court last month sentenced 11 people to death over their roles in a illegal scam empire along the border with Myanmar. But it won’t end a noxious multibillion-dollar industry that devastates the lives of two sets of victims. The first are those cheated out of money, often by people posing as potential romantic or business partners in what are known as “pig‑butchering” schemes. The second are those who are forced to cheat them, working in conditions amounting to modern slavery.The recent study, Scam: Inside Southeast Asia’s Cybercrime Compounds, by Ivan Franceschini, Ling Li and Mark Bo, paints a terrifying picture of the sector. Workers are trafficked into heavily guarded, prison-like compounds, where they are routinely abused and tortured for failing to meet targets, or extorted for ransoms. Others take the jobs willingly, but find that they cannot repay ru...

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3 w. ago China court sentences 11 people to death over alleged role in family

Another five people given suspended death sentences over alleged role in gang that operated scam centres and illegal gambling worth $1.4bnA court in China has sentenced 11 people to death for their alleged roles in a family-run crime syndicate accused of running illegal gambling and scam operations worth more than $1.4bn, and for the deaths of workers who disobeyed them.The Wenzhou intermediate people’s court on Monday sentenced 11 members of the powerful Ming family in Kokkang, Myanmar to death while another five were handed death sentences suspended for two years. Continue reading...

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3 w. ago Adult model who married UK Brit murder suspect busted by Spanish police with pal

Madison Smyth, 20, is married to Johnny Smyth, a prisoner who is someone police have questioned over the death of Belfast man John George who was found dead in Spain last December

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4 w. ago The murder that shook the nation, 20 years on: How Sally Anne Bowman

Sally Anne Bowman's dream was to appear on the front cover of Vogue magazine. Growing up in Croydon, south London, she set her heart on following in the footsteps of local girl Kate Moss.

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