An April 22 report by the United States Institute of Peace in April estimated that Colonel Saw Chit Thu and his militia earn about US$192 million annually from a single scam compound in Myawaddy: Shwe Kokko. Last year, scam centers in Myanmar raked in $15.3 billion, the institute said in a May report. Combined, they employ – or enslave – more than 120,000 people, according to a 2023 report by the UN’s Human Rights Office.

More than $100 million has been traced to a single crypto wallet used by scam centers in Myawaddy scam compound KK Park so far this year, according to an August 29 report by Chain Analysis, which monitors cyber crime.