Sri Lanka emerging as Chinese mafia hub, gang wars reach island nation
Sri Lanka is facing a growing national security threat as international Chinese cybercrime syndicates increasingly use the island nation as a base for operations. Recent arrests and the discovery of a murdered syndicate member using fraudulent passports have prompted police to warn leadership about the escalation of these criminal activities.
Why it matters
The infiltration of organized crime syndicates into new territories poses significant risks to regional stability and highlights vulnerabilities in national visa and immigration systems.
The recent abduction and murder of a member of a global Chinese mafia syndicate by his rivals in Sri Lanka have raised concerns of a possible major national security threat, with law enforcement agencies uncovering various methods used by such criminals to abuse the island nation’s visa system.According to people aware of the details, Sri Lanka is rapidly emerging as a base for international Chinese cyber crime syndicates and has prompted senior police officials to warn the top leadership over the need for urgent action before the situation escalates into a far greater crisis.While nearly 1,000 foreign nationals – including Chinese, Cambodian, Myanmar and Vietnamese citizens – were arrested during a series of raids in recent months, the recovery of the body of a Chinese national from Karandana, Eheliyagoda in Sabaragamuwa Province in Sri Lanka on July 23 has further heightened concerns over the growing operations of such international mafia…
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