China on Thursday executed 11 people linked to Myanmar criminal gangs, including “key members” involved in scam operations, state media reported. The centres are typically staffed by foreigners – including many Chinese – with many saying they were trafficked and forced to swindle people online. Scam centres, in which criminals run sophisticated online scams targeting people all over the world, have proliferated across south-east Asia in recent years, including in Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia. In April, the UN warned that Chinese and south-east Asian gangs are raking in tens of billions of dollars a year through cyber scam centres. This January authorities arrested Chen Zhi, an alleged scam king pin and head of the sanctioned Prince group, who has since been extradited to China.