U.S. Sanctions Myanmar Militia and Leader Over Cyber Scam, Trafficking Ties
The Karen National Army, leader Saw Chit Thu and sons targeted for aiding global scam networks, human trafficking and smuggling.
The U.S. Department of the Treasury has sanctioned the Karen National Army (KNA), a Myanmar militia group, for its role in large-scale cyber scam operations, human trafficking and cross-border smuggling.
The action, announced May 5 by the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), also targets KNA leader Saw Chit Thu and his sons, Saw Htoo Eh Moo and Saw Chit Chit.
The KNA, formerly known as the Karen Border Guard Force, controls territory along the Thai-Myanmar border. The region has become a hub for sophisticated cyber scams.
“Cyber scam operations such as those run by the KNA generate billions for criminal kingpins while depriving victims of their savings and security,” said Deputy Treasury Secretary Michael Faulkender.
Saw Chit Thu, who was sanctioned by the UK in December 2023, and his sons are accused of facilitating these scams by leasing KNA-controlled land to criminal organisations, supplying utilities and providing security at scam compounds. Survivors from KK Park, one such site, described being forced under threat of violence to scam strangers online from compounds guarded by KNA troops.
The Treasury’s move follows FinCEN’s May 1 designation of Cambodia’s Huione Group as a key money laundering concern for cyber scams tied to North Korea and Southeast Asian crime syndicates. Previous sanctions have targeted other regional players including Cambodian tycoon Ly Yong Phat in 2024 for rights abuses tied to scam centres.
Scams conducted in the region often play out over months and involve criminals building online relationships with victims before luring them into investing in fake cryptocurrency platforms. The schemes, known as “pig butchering” scams, cost Americans $2 billion in 2022 and $3.5 billion in 2023.
The sanctions block all U.S.-linked property of the KNA and the individuals named and bar U.S. persons from doing business with them.
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