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A Chinese judicial body has sentenced several leading figures of a notorious Myanmar mafia to death as Beijing persists in its crackdown on scam networks in Southeast Asian region.

Overall, 21 clan figures and partners were convicted of fraud, murder, assault and various crimes, reported a state media announcement released on the judicial portal.

The group is one of a handful of mafias that became dominant in the last two decades and converted the poor isolated region of Laukkaing into a profitable hub of gambling establishments and nightlife areas.

In recent years they turned to fraudulent schemes in which many of illegally moved people, a large number of them Chinese, are caught, mistreated and forced to defraud targets in illegal enterprises estimated at huge sums.

Specifics of the Judgment

Mafia head the patriarch and his offspring the younger Bai were among the group of men sentenced to execution by the court in Shenzhen. Yang Liqiang, Hu Xiaojiang and A fourth person were the remaining punished.

A couple of members of the clan mafia were received conditional death penalties. Five were given to life in prison, while more figures were received jail sentences between several years to two decades.

This family, who led their own militia, set up 41 bases to accommodate their online fraud operations and gambling houses, authorities reported.

Extent of Illegal Activities

Such criminal operations entailed more than twenty-nine billion yuan (over four billion dollars; over three billion pounds). These activities also caused the fatalities of six Chinese nationals, the suicide of an individual and numerous assaults, state media reported.

The severe punishments handed down by the court are part of China's effort to remove the large scam networks in the region - and issue a firm warning to other unlawful groups.

History of the Groups

Such groups rose to power in the 2000s with the support of a military leader - who is in charge of Myanmar's regime. He had wanted to support allies in the town after replacing its previous leader.

Among the groups, the Bais were "the top", the son earlier informed state media.

Back then, the clan was the leading in each of the political and military spheres," the individual said in a film about the clan, aired on official channels in July.

Within that documentary, a employee at one of illegal operations described the abuse he had experienced there: in addition to being beaten, he had his nails extracted with pliers and a couple of his digits amputated with a kitchen knife.

Further Allegations

The son is among those who were condemned to execution in the latest ruling. He has additionally been separately convicted of conspiring to traffic and produce eleven tons of illegal drugs, reports reported.

Decline of the Families

The families' end happened in recent times as political winds changed.

Previously Chinese authorities has encouraged the regime to limit scam schemes in Laukkaing.

Recently, the Chinese police released detention orders for the most prominent members of such clans.

Bai Suocheng, the clan's patriarch, was among the individuals who were extradited to China from the country in the beginning of the year.

For what reason is the Chinese government putting significant resources to pursue the clans?" a expert stated in the July report.

The purpose is to caution other people, no matter your identity, your location, as long as you commit these serious acts targeting the nationals, you will face consequences."