A Chinese national believed to be linked to 239 illegal gambling platforms has been arrested in Thailand, having previously utilised a Saint Kitts and Nevis citizenship to fly under the radar.
Local outlet The Thaiger reported that Bei Minsi, 32, was detained in the Pattaya region of the country by the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) following intelligence from the Chinese embassy in Thailand.
Minsi was born in China but holds Saint Kitts and Nevis citizenship through the Caribbean island’s citizenship-by-investment programme, which has also been utilised by others linked to illegal gambling networks in China.
Last month, an investigation by the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCRP) and The Times named Su Jiangbo as the fugitive whose assets were frozen by the UK Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) under an Unexplained Wealth Order.
Jiangbo used his golden passport from St. Kitts and Nevis to purchase properties in London, and he must now explain to UK authorities how he sourced the funds needed for these purchases.
Minsi is accused of being part of an illegal gambling network that was used by more than 330,000 Chinese players that generated a turnover of 13bn baht (£300.9m), and authorities said he used his acquired passport to enter Thailand and evade detection.
Intelligence gathered by the authorities has linked Minsi to She Zhijiang, who was also arrested in Thailand and has since been deported to China to face charges related to illegal gambling operations.
Zhijiang is the head of the Yatai International Holdings Group, the company behind the development of the Shwe Kokko Special Economic Zone in Myanmar.
The city, which is situated on the border with Thailand, has developed a reputation as a hub for scam centres, and Zhijiang was previously sanctioned by authorities in the UK and the US related to alleged criminal activity and links to human trafficking.
According to reports from Thailand, officials are now preparing Minsi to be deported to China to face legal action over the accusations.
The Chinese government has made a concerted push to take legal action against the criminals behind the illegal casino networks and scam operations in Southeast Asia that are increasingly targeting Chinese nationals.
In January, China successfully secured the extradition of Chen Zhi, a Chinese-born business tycoon who was arrested in Cambodia after being accused of running an ‘industrial scale’ fraud network.
Zhi is the Founder of Prince Holding Group, a multi-billion-pound conglomerate based in Cambodia that has been accused by UK and US authorities of constructing casinos and compounds to facilitate scams totalling billions of dollars using forced labour.
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