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One Chinese judicial body has sentenced five prominent individuals of a well-known Burmese mafia to death as Chinese authorities continues its efforts on fraudulent operations in Southeast Asian region.

Altogether, 21 Bai family individuals and collaborators were sentenced of fraud, murder, injury and various crimes, said a official document released on the court portal.

This clan is among a handful of mafias that gained influence in the last two decades and converted the poor isolated region of the town into a lucrative base of casinos and red-light districts.

Over the past few years they shifted to scams in which thousands of illegally moved workers, many of them Chinese, are ensnared, abused and compelled to scam others in unlawful enterprises valued at billions.

Information of the Sentencing

Mafia head Bai Suocheng and his son Bai Yingcang were among the five figures given to capital punishment by the Shenzhen Intermediate People's Court. Yang Liqiang, A third figure and Chen Guangyi were the other three punished.

A couple of individuals of the Bai family syndicate were given delayed executions. Five were sentenced to life in prison, while more figures were handed jail sentences ranging from several years to two decades.

The Bais, who controlled their own militia, set up forty-one compounds to host their digital scam operations and betting establishments, officials said.

Scale of Criminal Operations

Such illegal activities involved over twenty-nine billion yuan ($4.1 billion; £3.1bn). These activities also led to the deaths of several from China nationals, the suicide of one and multiple assaults, state media reported.

The severe punishments delivered by the judicial body are within the Chinese initiative to remove the large fraud networks in Southeast Asia - and issue a strong signal to further illegal syndicates.

History of the Groups

These clans rose to power in the 2000s with the help of a prominent figure - who is in charge of the country's junta. The leader had wanted to bolster partners in the town after removing its former warlord.

Within the clans, the Bais were "the most powerful", the son previously informed state media.

Back then, the clan was the dominant in both the political and armed circles," the individual said in a film about the Bai family, aired on official channels in July.

In the same report, a individual at their fraud facilities described the harm he had suffered there: besides being assaulted, he had his fingernails extracted with tools and two of his digits cut off with a tool.

Further Charges

The son is among those who were condemned to death this week. He has also been separately sentenced of planning to traffic and manufacture 11 tonnes of illegal drugs, reports reported.

Downfall of the Families

Their downfall came in recent times as political winds changed.

For years Chinese authorities has encouraged the regime to limit fraudulent schemes in Laukkaing.

Last year, the law enforcement announced detention orders for the key individuals of these clans.

Bai Suocheng, the clan's patriarch, was included in the warlords who were transferred to Beijing from Myanmar in recent months.

For what reason is the Chinese government putting such extensive work to go after the clans?" a official commented in the summer report.

The purpose is to caution groups, no matter your position, your location, if you engage in these heinous offenses targeting the nationals, you will pay the price."