KK PARK SCAM CENTER REPORT
Location : Myawaddy Township, Kayin (Karen) State, Myanmar. ( Next to “Thaungyin” River/ Moei River at Myanmar-Thai Border)
History
KK Park is a large compound that was not owned by a single individual or publicly registered company. It is jointly established by
- Local Militias (KNA & BGF): The hub operates on land originally owned by a faction of the Karen National Union (KNU). The region operates largely under the protection of the Karen National Army (KNA), formerly known as the Border Guard Force (BGF), commanded by warlord Saw Chit Thu, who had a deal in 2017 with a Chinese company to build Shwe Kokko Myaing, a new city believed to be largely funded by scams.
- Chinese Triad Figures – Investigations link the compound’s inception and operations to Chinese organized crime networks, including individuals affiliated with the triad boss Wan Kuok-koi, which the scam center is named by his initials.
- Local shell companies – Local business entities and landholders who assisted the property development and infrastructure within the region.
The KNU (Karen National Union) denied participation by KNU leaders, condemned the acts and said it would investigate the matter. The area where KK Park was built on is a focus region for Chinese government’s Belt and Road Initiative, though the Chinese government later distanced itself from the complex following widespread fraud.
Activities
The KK Park was originally designed for trade purposes, constructed between 2019-2021, and an additional ongoing process till 2023.
Later, the complex had operated a major hub of –
- Cyber Crimes
- Investment Frauds
- Interest Frauds
- Pig Butchering Scams (Catfishing and romance scams by using crypto currency)
- Human Trafficking (within “Golden Triangle” area)
In August 2022, the Myanmar military junta conducted massive sweeps targeting hundreds of internet fraud companies in Myawaddy, forcing these companies to relocate to Yangon. Subsequently, the Karen National Union attacked the junta’s Border Guard Force stronghold. As a result, many KK Park scam operations were suspended.
In June 2023, since the Myanmar Military Junta didn’t renewal the power supply contract, Thai authorities announced that they have stopped power supply to KK Park and Shwe Kokko Myaing which turned into organized crime and human trafficking hub due to Burmese Government’s limited reach and oversight in this remote area.
Later on 20 October 2025, Myanmar State Media “Myanmar Alin” reported that the army conducted a major raid on KK Park. There were more than 2,000 workers released and 30 Starlink satellite terminals were confiscated.
Victims
There were over 60,000 victims with 28 nationalities, primarily from China, India, Ethiopia, Philippines et.al. They were typically lured to these scam works by offers of good salaries, or in some cases tricked into thinking they will be doing different work in Thailand, not Myanmar.
The scammers look for workers with skills in the languages of those who are targeted for cyber-fraud, usually English and Chinese. They are forced into 17 hours of conducting online frauds and scams, from love scams and crypto fraud, to money laundering and illegal gambling everyday. Some people were willing to do the work, but others were forced to stay by life threatening and torturing. If they wanted to be released, they had to pay the massive amount of “Contract Termination” fees calculated by the inflated cost of transportation and the amount of money they earned from the scams and frauds.
In February 2025, More than 250 people from 20 nationalities who had been working in telecom fraud centres in Karen State were released by KNU and brought to Thailand. Most of the released victims were from African or Asian nations. They were received by the Thai army, and were assessed to find out if they were victims of human trafficking. Then Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra met Chinese leader Xi Jinping and promised to shut down the scam centres which had proliferated along the Thai-Myanmar border.
In October 2025, Myanmar’s military took control of KK Park and inspected the area, driving a large number of people into Thailand. Thailand detained nearly 700 victims, who fled Myanmar and crossed into Tak State, Thailand. The people were taken to undergo legal procedures with local security agencies to maintain order along the Thai-Myanmar border. The group consists primarily of individuals from India and China, with smaller numbers from Vietnam, Pakistan, Indonesia and several other countries.
Conclusion
Under pressure from Thailand and China, the leader of KNA and BGF Saw Chit Thu said they are expelling the scam businesses from their territories. As of 2026, KK Park and Shwe Kokko Myaing have been the targets of major crackdowns by Myanmar authorities, including raids, arrests, and the demolition of buildings associated with online scam, illegal gambling, and human trafficking. Official reports stated that all identical illegal structures in KK Park had stopped as its buildings were demolished, and in Shwe Kokko Myaing also.
The BBC visited Shwe Kokko Myaing at the invitation of Yatai, the company which built the city. Yatai stated that there are no more scams in Shwe Kokko Myaing. It has put up huge billboards all over town proclaiming, in Chinese, Burmese and English, that forced labour is not allowed, and that “online businesses” should leave. But, the local people said to the BBC that the scam business was still running and they were interviewing the people who were once employed by them.
KK Park was one of many scam compounds in Southeast Asia. This shows how difficult it is to completely eliminate the scam industry, as operations can easily relocate and making it difficult for authorities to stop scam operations completely.
Resources
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2d3w90x86po
Human Development Forum Foundation, June 2026.
Comments are closed