Myanmar’s military regime has launched a major crackdown on online scam centres and illegal gambling hubs in the KK Park and Shwe Kokko areas of Myawaddy Township, close to the Thailand border. These areas have long been known for running large-scale cyber fraud networks and gambling operations involving foreign nationals.
In the past few days, videos from the region showed parts of the KK Park scam compound being blown up and pulled down by heavy machinery. In KK Park, where 635 illegal buildings were previously identified, authorities demolished 11 more buildings on Sunday, 23rd November.
BOOM! Myanmar military BLOWS UP buildings used as online scam centers as it continues crackdown pic.twitter.com/GbsZ51cGG4
— RT (@RT_com) November 24, 2025
The military announced on Sunday, 23rd November, that it has been carrying out “clearance operations,” which include demolishing buildings that were set up without legal permission and raiding places used for fraud.
According to the regime, 217 out of 635 buildings linked to online scam activities in KK Park have already been demolished, and work is still going on. In Shwe Kokko, officials searched 33 buildings between 18th and 23rd November and confiscated computers, mobile phones and other equipment used for running online scams.
Footage on Nov 23 showed the KK #scam compound in #Myawaddy, #Myanmar being demolished, with buildings blown up and torn down by excavators. The military also raided multiple sites, arresting suspected #fraud operators and destroying computer equipment. pic.twitter.com/PpKF6lhDYy
— Shanghai Daily (@shanghaidaily) November 24, 2025
Hundreds of foreigners arrested
The crackdown has led to the arrest of large groups of foreign nationals. On Sunday, 23rd November alone, 156 people from countries including China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Kenya, India, Nigeria, the Philippines, and several African nations were detained in Shwe Kokko for involvement in cross-border crime.
The military also said that between 18th and 23rd November, a total of 1,746 foreigners who had entered Myanmar illegally were arrested in the same area. Authorities recovered nearly 2,900 computers, over 21,700 mobile phones, 101 Starlink routers and several other devices used for online gambling and fraud.
Thousands detained since January
The detained foreigners are currently being kept in Shwe Kokko Myaing Village and will be sent back to their home countries as soon as possible. Between 30th January and 23rd November 2025, Myanmar detained 12,586 foreign nationals involved in online scams. Out of them, 9,978 people have already been deported through Thailand, while the remaining 2,608 are still waiting to be transferred.
According to the reports, Scam operations in Southeast Asia originated from loosely regulated casinos and online gambling beginning in the 1990s, but rapidly expanded during the COVID-19 pandemic as criminal groups sought new sources of profits amid lockdowns and strict border controls.
Shwe Kokko, a major scam compound in Myawaddy, was set up in 2017 by the Hong Kong-registered Yatai International Holdings Group and a precursor of the KNA, initially advertised as a casino destination, according to the United States Institute of Peace.
The company has denied involvement in any criminal activities, including human trafficking.
After years of expansion, Myawaddy’s scam compounds came under the spotlight in January, following the high-profile abduction and release of a Chinese actor in Thailand that sparked a multi-national effort to dismantle the businesses.
