China and Thailand detain 12 crime ring members suspected of trafficking

Chinese and Thai police have worked together to detain 12 members of a crime ring accused of kidnapping six victims in Thailand and trafficking them to Myanmar as part of an employment and telecoms scam, state news agency Xinhua reported on Friday.

The report came a day after Foreign Minister Wang Yi urged members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) to crack down on cross-border telecoms fraud.

The victims in the case include Wang Xing, a Chinese actor who earlier this month flew to Bangkok where he expected to work on a film production but instead was kidnapped to the city of Myawaddy in Myanmar, a notorious hub for scams.

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A model and a lighting engineer were among the other victims, according to Xinhua.

Wang’s case caused public outcry after his girlfriend posted on social media that he was missing. Several celebrities shared her post, which drew wide attention to the actor’s ordeal. Wang was later rescued and returned to China.

Wang’s story sparked a flood of reports on Chinese social media about similar cases, with many users claiming their friends and relatives had also disappeared near the Myanmar border after being tricked into travelling to Thailand.

In response, China’s Ministry of Public Security said earlier this week that it had deployed security authorities to investigate the cases of citizens who had gone missing abroad.

The ministry added that it would carry out investigations regarding missing citizens and coordinate efforts with China’s foreign ministry and its embassies and consulates to rescue citizens trapped overseas.

Citing the Ministry of Public Security, the Xinhua report said the crime ring had posted false recruitment advertisements for actors, models and crew members in several WeChat groups and lured those who responded to Thailand. The victims were then taken to Myawaddy, where they were sent to various scam compounds.

“A number of recent online cases in which the persons concerned have been lost or trapped outside the country have been linked to this criminal ring,” the report said. It added that investigations into related cases and further arrests were in progress.

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On Thursday, while meeting 10 envoys from Asean countries in Beijing, top diplomat Wang said the “vicious” cases, which involved online gambling and telecoms fraud along the Thailand-Myanmar border, had threatened and harmed the vital interests of Chinese citizens.

He added that “relevant countries” should take responsibility and adopt strong measures to crack down on telecoms crime.

He said China was willing to strengthen bilateral and multilateral cooperation on law enforcement and security with Asean countries to create a safe environment for people-to-people exchanges and cooperation among neighbouring countries.

During the meeting with Asean countries, Wang also affirmed China’s support for multilateralism.

He said China was willing to work with Asean and like-minded countries to promote equal and orderly world multipolarity, inclusive economic globalisation, and the creation of a more just and rational global governance system.

This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP’s Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright © 2025 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

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