Scores of Chinese forced to gamble, tortured and held for ransom in Myanmar casino scam
People lured over the border with the promise of jobs or loans then held captive after they were forced to gamble and pay off their ‘losses’, newspaper reports
Dozens of families in China have received ransom demands to secure the release of relatives held against their will in Myanmar, according to a Chinese newspaper report.
Some of the people held captive have been beaten and tortured, according to the Beijing Youth Daily.
The victims were lured over the border with the promise of jobs or loans at casinos in Myanmar, the newspaper said.
But once they arrived they were forced to gamble in the casinos and then told they could not leave until their families paid off their losses.
A police notice pictured in the report, which appeared to have been issued by the authorities in the border city of Ruili in Yunnan province, said there had been a huge number of cases of Chinese held hostage in Myanmar in return for ransom.
The notice said Chinese citizens and foreigners colluded to lure people over the border with the promise of jobs or loans .