Zhang is the first economic crime suspect extradited from Bangkok to China since the 1999 treaty came into effect

A Malaysian businessman accused of running a fraud syndicate has been extradited from Thailand to China in a case involving more than 100 billion yuan (14 billion dollars).

He is the first suspect in an economic crime to be handed over from Bangkok to China since the extradition treaty between the two countries came into effect in 1999, China’s Ministry of Public Security said on Friday.

“The successful extradition … is of great significance to the consolidation and deepening of law enforcement and judicial cooperation between China and Thailand,” the ministry said in the press release, calling the move a “major achievement.”

The ministry said the suspect was sent to China on Tuesday and gave only the man’s surname: Zhang. This was a reference to Zhang Yufa, better known as Tedy Teow Wooi Huat, the founder of the business conglomerate MBI Group.

After investigation, Teow is suspected of running a pyramid scheme and defrauding people, many of whom are believed to be Chinese nationals, into buying MBI’s unlicensed and unapproved cryptocurrency.

According to a statement from the ministry, more than 10 million investors have fallen victim to the scheme since 2012, with a total of more than 100 billion Chinese yuan involved.

In late 2020, authorities in the southwestern Chinese metropolis of Chongqing launched an investigation into Teow. A few months later, the China Bureau of the International Criminal Police Organization issued a global search notice for him.

Thai police arrested the businessman in July 2022 after he fled Malaysia, after which Beijing requested Bangkok to have him deported to face trial in China.

In May, a Thai court made a final ruling to hand Teow over to China, a decision later supported by the Thai government.

Kuala Lumpur had also requested Teow’s deportation to Malaysia, where he is also wanted for fraud. But their request was made after China’s.

MBI Group, which describes itself as a company with “diversified interests in commodities and management developments”, made headlines in October 2019 when about 100 Chinese nationals staged a protest outside the Beijing embassy in Malaysia, claiming they had lost their entire savings to the company.

The Chinese government has described Teow’s case as “extraordinary” and expects the suspect’s transfer to set a “positive example” for future extradition cooperation between China and other countries.

China’s top diplomat Wang Yi called for greater transnational cooperation to combat cross-border crime in the region, particularly online gambling and telecom fraud, during a meeting with his counterparts from Thailand, Laos and Myanmar at the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) forum in the Thai city of Chiang Mai last week.

Wang said the four countries have carried out many joint operations since last year and arrested more than 50,000 suspects in gambling and fraud cases.

The foreign ministers of all six countries under the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Mechanism, which also includes Cambodia and Vietnam, adopted a joint statement at the meeting on strengthening cooperation in combating transnational crime.

“We are deeply concerned about the seriousness and severity of the ongoing and increasing threat posed by cross-border crime,” the statement said.

“We urge Member States to prioritise cooperation in the fight against drug trafficking and the reduction of fraud in telecommunications/online and all forms of online gambling,” the report added, calling on all six countries to work together to improve information sharing and border controls.