Arrogant Bounty! High Rewards Offered for Escaped Myanmar Phone Scammers, One Confirmed to Have "Disappeared in Myanmar"

 Cover News reporters Shi Wei, Lin Jueyao, intern Peng Jingwan

On August 18th, a set of chat screenshots caused widespread attention on social media. The chat screenshots claimed that a Myanmar phone scam gang had issued more than 20 rewards for those who had fled the gang, with the highest reward amount reaching 600,000 yuan. In the rewards, the identity information of three individuals was complete and clear. Cover News reporters separately contacted the registered residences of these three individuals and learned that one of them had gone missing in Myanmar three years ago and is currently one of the "persuasion to return personnel" in Myanmar. The situations of the other two individuals are being verified locally.

Rumors spread that more than 20 people fled the phone scam group and were rewarded, including 3 Myanmar women

Many netizens introduced that the above-mentioned chat screenshots are from a foreign chat software called "飞机" ("Airplane"), also known as "电报" ("Telegram"). In the screenshots, people began to offer rewards from July 21st, with the most recent reward posted on August 14th. At least 29 people have been rewarded, including 5 women and a couple. These 29 individuals are from various provinces and cities such as Sichuan, Hunan, and Fujian.

The targeted individuals in the rewards mostly held loan notes, indicating when they borrowed tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of yuan from a certain institution or individual, with red handprints on them. Some people also held several bundles of cash.

The reporter noticed that the faces of some individuals holding loan notes seemed to have bruise marks. One reward message claimed that this fugitive had a "heart condition."

In addition, a reward for Huang from Fujian included a screenshot from the Missing Persons Database of the Ministry of Public Security of China as proof of the authenticity of the information about the rewarded person.

These reward messages disclosed their names, nicknames, high-definition photos, where they fled from, and the direction of their escape. Providing valid information or capturing the rewarded person could lead to receiving rewards of 50,000, 100,000, or even 600,000 yuan. Some promotional messages also incited potential informants to harm the rewarded person, with different prices for breaking their arms or killing them.

One reward message scolded the runaway: "The company treated you well. You've been here for two years, and the company's dividends and salary were not less for you. You said your father had a car accident and borrowed 150,000 yuan, but you heartlessly ran away after receiving the money. Providing clues that lead to their capture will be rewarded with 500,000 yuan."

One individual announced, "Taking out a model, a Parisian" (source: internet)

Among the rewarded individuals, in addition to Chinese citizens, there were 3 Myanmar women. Additionally, someone posted information stating that an individual is a model, 25 years old, a Parisian, with a price of 200,000 yuan.

One rewarded individual confirmed that they had gone missing in Myanmar three years ago

The hometowns of two other individuals have yet to respond officially

Three of the reward messages contained clear identity card photos and driver's license photos. Cover News reporters contacted their registered residences one by one for verification based on the information provided.

The rewarded individual Wang, whose registered residence is Xing'an County, Luoyang City, Henan Province, born in 1991. The village cadre introduced that there is indeed a child with this name in the village. "This child lost their mother at a young age and went to work in Wenzhou with their father very early on. They haven't returned for many years, and there are no relatives in the village. The village cannot contact them."

The reporters subsequently contacted the Xing'an County government, hoping to coordinate with the public security and household registration departments to contact Wang's family and verify whether he is in danger.

The staff member on duty at Xing'an County expressed that they only record information and cannot provide a response. The phone numbers of the Xing'an County Propaganda Department have been unanswered. The staff of the county government office stated that the reporters could directly contact the Public Security Bureau or the Propaganda Department. After explaining the situation, the other party indicated that they would need to consult their superiors and asked the reporter to send an official interview letter, after which they could coordinate with the relevant departments based on instructions.

The rewarded individual Huang Hua's registered residence is Pingnan Town, Pingnan County, Guangxi, born in 1996. After recording the information, the town government staff member stated that they would feedback the situation to the community and reply after verifying the information.

The rewarded individual Huang Jie's registered residence is in a village in Yongtai County, Fujian Province. When the town staff member heard this name, they confirmed that Huang Jie was indeed the person in this registered residence information. "He went to Myanmar three years ago and has been missing ever since. He is still on our list of people we're trying to persuade to return, but we still can't contact him."

The staff member added that Huang Jie has a brother, and their parents are honest and decent people. Since he lost contact in Myanmar, the family has been deeply worried. "We just confirmed that the family hasn't received any messages for help from him until now. If someone who has escaped is still being rewarded locally, that's really arrogant. I don't know what kind of hellish environment he is in."