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One Chinese court has sentenced five prominent figures of an infamous Burmese organized crime group to death as Chinese authorities maintains its campaign on scam networks in Southeast Asian region.

In all, twenty-one clan members and associates were sentenced of scams, homicide, assault and other offenses, reported a official document released on the court website.

This clan is among a small number of organized crime groups that gained influence in the early 2000s and changed the poor backwater town of Laukkaing into a profitable hub of casinos and nightlife areas.

In recent years they pivoted to fraudulent schemes in which thousands of illegally moved individuals, a large number of them Chinese, are trapped, harmed and obligated to cheat others in unlawful enterprises valued at huge sums.

Information of the Sentencing

Mafia boss Bai Suocheng and his heir the younger Bai were included in the several individuals given to death by the court in Shenzhen. Another individual, Hu Xiaojiang and A fourth person were the remaining sentenced.

Two figures of the clan mafia were given conditional death penalties. Five were condemned to life imprisonment, while additional individuals were handed jail sentences between several years to two decades.

The clan, who controlled their own militia, established 41 facilities to host their cyberscam schemes and gambling houses, government reported.

Magnitude of Illegal Operations

These illegal operations entailed more than 29 billion local currency ($4.1 billion; over three billion pounds). They also led to the fatalities of several Chinese citizens, the self-inflicted death of one and numerous harm, official sources reported.

The harsh penalties handed down by the court are a component of the Chinese effort to eliminate the vast fraud operations in Southeast Asia - and issue a stern message to further illegal groups.

History of the Clans

These families rose to power in the early 2000s with the help of Min Aung Hlaing - who is in charge of the country's regime. He had aimed to bolster partners in the town after removing its former leader.

Among the groups, the this family were "absolutely number one", the son previously stated to official sources.

During that period, the clan was the most powerful in both the government and military arenas," the individual said in a report about the Bai family, shown on official channels in July.

During the documentary, a individual at one of fraud facilities described the mistreatment he had suffered at the location: besides being assaulted, he had his nails extracted with tools and two of his fingers severed with a kitchen knife.

Further Allegations

Bai Yingcang is among those who were sentenced to execution in the latest ruling. He has also been separately convicted of organizing to smuggle and manufacture eleven tons of methamphetamine, reports announced.

Downfall of the Clans

The families' fall happened in recent times as circumstances shifted.

Over a long period Beijing has urged the Myanmar junta to control fraudulent schemes in Laukkaing.

Recently, the Chinese police announced arrest warrants for the key individuals of such groups.

The patriarch, the clan's leader, was among the individuals who were transferred to Beijing from the country in the beginning of the year.

"Why is the Chinese government making so much effort to target the four families?" a expert stated in the July documentary.

This serves as a warning groups, regardless of your position, your location, as long as you engage in such terrible offenses against the citizens, you will pay the price."