Zhang is first financial crime suspect Bangkok has extradited to China since their 1999 treaty took impact
A Malaysian businessman accused of main a fraud syndicate has been extradited from Thailand to China in a case involving greater than 100 billion yuan (US$14 billion).
He’s the primary suspect in an financial crime that Bangkok has turned over to China since an extradition treaty between the 2 international locations took impact in 1999, in accordance to the Chinese language public safety ministry on Friday.
“The profitable extradition … is of landmark significance to the consolidation and deepening of regulation enforcement and judicial cooperation between China and Thailand,” the ministry stated within the launch, calling the transfer a “main achievement”.
The ministry stated the suspect was despatched to China on Tuesday and solely gave the person’s surname: Zhang. This was a reference to Zhang Yufa, higher referred to as Tedy Teow Wooi Huat, the founding father of the enterprise conglomerate MBI Group.
Following an investigation, Teow is suspected of working a pyramid scheme and defrauding individuals, a lot of them thought to be Chinese language nationals, out of cash by tricking them into buying MBI’s unlicensed and unrecognised cryptocurrency.
Greater than 10 million traders have fallen prey to the scheme since 2012, and the cash concerned was value over 100 billion Chinese language yuan, in accordance to the ministry’s assertion.
Authorities within the southwest Chinese language megacity of Chongqing launched an investigation into Teow in late 2020, and months later the China bureau of the Worldwide Legal Police Organisation issued a worldwide needed discover for him.
Thai police arrested the businessman in July 2022 after he fled Malaysia. Following that, Beijing submitted a request to Bangkok in search of to have him deported to stand trial in China.
A Thai court docket issued a closing ruling to transfer Teow to China in Could, a call later supported by the Thai authorities.
Kuala Lumpur had additionally sought Teow’s deportation to Malaysia, the place he’s additionally needed for fraud. However their request was made after China’s.
MBI Group, which describes itself as having “diversified pursuits in sources and administration developments”, made headlines in October 2019 when about 100 Chinese language nationals staged an illustration exterior Beijing’s embassy in Malaysia claiming that they had misplaced their life financial savings to the agency
The Chinese language authorities has characterised Teow’s case as “extraordinary” and anticipated the handover of the suspect to set a “constructive instance” for future extradition cooperation between China and different international locations.
China’s high diplomat Wang Yi known as for intensified transnational cooperation to fight cross-border crimes within the area, particularly on-line playing and telecoms fraud, when assembly his counterparts from Thailand, Laos and Myanmar throughout the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) discussion board within the Thai metropolis of Chiang Mai final week.
Wang stated that the 4 international locations had undertaken many collaborative operations and arrested over 50,000 suspects in playing and fraud instances since final yr.
The overseas ministers of all six international locations below the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation mechanism, which additionally contains Cambodia and Vietnam, reached a joint assertion on strengthening cooperation in combating transnational crime throughout the gathering.
“We’re deeply involved concerning the gravity and seriousness of the persistent and escalating threats posed by transboundary crimes,” the assertion stated.
“We urge member international locations to prioritise cooperation within the areas of anti-drug trafficking in addition to curbing telecommunication/on-line frauds and every kind of on-line playing,” it added, calling all six nations to work collectively to enhance info sharing and border controls.