Seven Thai and 22 Myanmar nationals have been arrested in a recent crackdown in Myanmar's Tachileik on suspicion of being involved with illegal online gambling and scams, says a report by Tachileik News Agency, an online Myanmar news agency which publishes on Facebook.
All 29 suspects were detained by Myanmar's State Administration Council (SAC) in operations conducted from Wednesday until Friday, said the report which was published late Friday night.
The first 16 suspects, all Myanmar nationals, were arrested on Wednesday after the SAC raided a building rented out to a Thai national, where the authorities also seized 61 laptop computers, 329 computer screens, 90 CPUs, 90 mobile phones and two unregistered cars, said the same report.
Later on Thursday, the other 13 suspects, including seven Thai nationals, were arrested at a house also in Tachileik with 50 computers, 300 mobile phones 1 litre of opium juice and 30 bottles of cough syrup, said the report.
The busted online gambling dens were believed to have been owned and operated by a Thai man and his wife who live in Chiang Mai, while many Thais and Chinese people kept coming to work at the raided building, said the report.
The operations followed Thailand's decision to cut off electricity, oil and internet services to Myanmar's areas believed to be linked to online gambling and scamming.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra on Friday evening met security officials and leaders of the armed forces and the Royal Thai Police to discuss the ongoing operations to curb call centre scam gangs, human trafficking and drug trafficking in the border areas.
The meeting partly dealt with a proposal for the armed forces to supply the government with more security forces to ensure the continuity of the government's cut of electricity, oil supplies and internet services in five areas in Myanmar believed to house online scamming and gambling hubs, Maj Gen Thanathip Sawangsang, spokesman for the Ministry of Defence, said on Saturday.
Defence Minister Phumtham Wechayachai also joined the Friday meeting, said the spokesman.
Attendees at the meeting were also told the energy and internet cut proved to be a decisive and effective measure, he said. Myanmar authorities have also stepped forward with offers to help return workers toiling in scam centres across the border.
Meanwhile, the PM asked the border policy committee to speed up the expansion of this work and report back about its outcome in one month, said Maj Gen Thanathip.
