The military junta announced on January 6 that eight individuals involved in forging passports and stamps to facilitate the trafficking of Myanmar workers to Thailand and Malaysia have been arrested.
The suspects include individuals associated with the One Asia Employment Agency and Shan Htet Travel Services, both operating in Kyauktada Township, Yangon Region.
According to the junta’s statement, the forgers charged between 7 million and 8 million kyats for creating counterfeit passports and stamps, which were then used to send workers to Thailand and subsequently to Malaysia.
“A typical route involves first entering Thailand and then moving on to a third country. Exiting Myanmar legally is difficult now, so fake exit stamps are used to cross into Thailand through Mae Sot or Tachileik. The forgers process about three people per day. In Tachileik, there are brokers and individuals waiting to use these counterfeit stamps,” a broker in Tachileik said.
Reports indicate that in the Tachileik area, individuals pay up to 18,000 Thai baht to have fake exit stamps prepared, according to sources from local brokers.
The arrests stemmed from an earlier investigation on December 9, 2024, when the junta’s security forces in Karen State’s Myawaddy township apprehended 11 individuals carrying counterfeit passports at the Myanmar-Thailand Friendship Bridge No. 1.
Subsequent investigations revealed that the group had forged 734 counterfeit passport books. The junta stated that it is continuing to investigate and identify others involved in the operation.
