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30 escaped foreign scam suspects rearrested while allegedly running new ...
Thirty foreign nationals who allegedly escaped from the Welisara Detention Centre after being arrested over online financial fraud operations have been rearrested by Sri Lankan Police. The suspects, comprising 21 Chinese nationals and nine Vietnamese nationals, were taken into custody during a raid carried out at a rented building in the Boralesgamuwa area by the Mount Lavinia Divisional Crimes Investigation Bureau. Police said the group had allegedly resumed operating illegal online financial scams from the location after escaping custody. During the raid, officers seized 10 computers, 29 iPhones, internet communication devices, and several other electronic items believed to have been used in the operation. Investigators said the suspects were among 152 foreign nationals arrested by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on April 2 over a similar offence before being detained at the Welisara Detention Centre under court orders. According to Police, the suspects had rented the upper floor of a two-storey building in Boralesgamuwa for a monthly rent of Rs. 1.5 million and had recently moved into the premises. Authorities also stated that none of the arrested individuals were in possession of valid visas or passports at the time of arrest. Further investigations are underway. (Newswire) 2026-05-07
Global Crackdown Arrests 276, Shuts 9 Crypto Scam Centers, Seizes $701M
A coordinated international operation involving U.S. and Chinese authorities has arrested at least 276 suspects and shut down nine scam centers used for cryptocurrency investment fraud schemes targeting Americans, resulting in millions of dollars in losses. The crackdown was led by the Dubai Police, under the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Ministry of Interior, in partnership with the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Chinese Ministry of Public Security. Among those arrested are individuals from Burma and Indonesia, who were apprehended by authorities from Dubai and Thailand. Thet Min Nyi, 27, Wiliang Awang, 23, Andreas Chandra, 29, Lisa Mariam, 29, and two fugitive co-conspirators have been charged with federal fraud and money laundering charges in the U.S. "Fraudsters who target Americans from overseas cannot operate with impunity, no matter where in the world they reside," Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department's (DoJ) Criminal Division said. "Scam center organizers and fraudsters who defraud Americans and others will face justice in American courts and in courts around the world. In contemporary society, fraud is borderless, and law enforcement activity to combat it and eliminate it is as well." According to the indictment, the defendants are alleged to have managed, worked for, and recruited others to work at three different companies named Ko Thet Company, Sanduo Group, and Giant Company that allegedly operated several scam centers. Thet Min Nyi is believed to be the manager and recruiter for the Ko Thet Company. The scams involved tricking users into parting with their money through bogus cryptocurrency investments after building trust over time, often by entering into friendly or romantic relationships, a long-running scheme known as pig butchering or romance baiting. The illicit operation is closely intertwined with human trafficking, where foreign nationals are coerced into running the scams under slave-like conditions after being recruited with false offers of high-paying jobs. "After that, the scammers promoted investments in cryptocurrencies and assisted victims in setting up accounts and transferring cryptocurrency to investment platforms that, unbeknownst to the victims, were false," the DoJ said. "The alleged scammers touted their own successes and returns in cryptocurrency investments and encouraged their victims to invest more. They also encouraged their victims to borrow money from friends and fam...
Sri Lankan police arrest 37 Chinese at suspected scam center
The arrests came a month after 152 foreign nationals, mostly Chinese, were detained for allegedly running a cyberscam operation in the island's northwest.
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