Authorities in the People’s Republic of China continue to busily extradite large gangs accused of running scams that target mainland China from overseas. 77 Chinese nationals were deported from Fiji whilst another 143 suspected fraudsters were arrested and expelled from Indonesia. Meanwhile, police in Latvia have detained 110 alleged scammers following a request from the Chinese authorities (which makes me wonder why European Union countries do so little to help each other fight cross-border fraud).
The Indonesian case prompted complaints from Taiwan, as 22 of the individuals taken from Indonesia are Taiwanese citizens. The People’s Republic of China does not recognize the Taiwanese government, and this has already led to instances of Taiwanese fraudsters being deported to mainland China from Spain and Malaysia.
In late 2016 the People’s Republic of China introduced harsh new penalties for anyone convicted of committing fraud over the telephone. Fraudsters found guilty of stealing more than CNY50,000 (USD7,500) can potentially be imprisoned for life.
