Thailand court orders extradition to China of alleged online gambling kingpin

BANGKOK (AP) — An appeals court in Thailand on Monday approved the extradition to China of She Zhijiang, an alleged transnational crime kingpin accused by Beijing of having run over 200 illegal online gambling operations.

The Chinese national is perhaps the most prominent figure among Asia’s alleged cybercrime operators to be arrested, though China has arrested and sentenced to death other major scam organizers.

She was arrested in Bangkok in August 2022 on a 2014 arrest warrant from China’s police. He is currently in the Thai capital’s Klong Prem Central Prison.

She’s legal team had challenged the constitutionality of Thailand extradition law, but that was rejected last month. Monday’s ruling calls for him to be sent to China within 90 days.

Cybercrime has flourished in Southeast Asia where law enforcement is weak, especially in Cambodia and Myanmar. Casinos especially have been havens for criminal activity, and became notorious as centers for online scamming activity when the COVID-19 pandemic hampered in-person gambling.

According to a statement by Thailand’s office of the attorney general, Chinese authorities accused She of establishing 239 illegal online gambling websites, and he was also linked to illegal online gambling networks and casinos in Myanmar.

She became prominent in the region when he developed the Yatai New City project in Myanmar’s Shwe Kokko city, a complex near the Thai border that is notorious for cyberscam activities and human trafficking.

A 2024 report by the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime said She “is known to have a robust business and investment portfolio across Southeast Asia, and particularly Cambodia, Myanmar, Thailand and t he Philippines, spanning across industries including real estate, construction, entertainment and blockchain technology.”

The U.S. and British governments had imposed sanctions on She for alleged criminal activities.