By Ko Myo / MPA
YANGON, Myanmar — In a damning exposé uncovering the deep structural corruption driving Myanmar’s military elite, the independent justice advocacy group Justice For Myanmar (JFM) has revealed that a network closely linked to the military junta attempted to launder approximately 800 kilograms of gold—valued at an estimated 48 million USD—in a transnational scheme masterminded directly by Khin Thiri Thet Mon, the daughter of junta chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing.
The comprehensive corporate investigation is built on leaked draft contracts, letters of intent, and internal personal communications obtained by JFM. The records trace a highly sophisticated illicit trade route winding through Thailand, Laos, and Hong Kong, initiated just months after the illegal February 2021 military coup attempt.
According to the leaked documents, the junta-linked network sought to sell the massive gold reserves to a subsidiary of the AIF Group, a prominent Laotian business conglomerate. The financial execution of the transaction was designed to be routed through BIC Bank Lao, a commercial financial institution partially owned by the Laotian government.
The operational core of the conspiracy featured high-profile middlemen with close ties to the ruling family. Tun Min Latt, a notorious junta arms broker and intimate crony of the Min Aung Hlaing household, allegedly orchestrated the logistical framework alongside his immediate business partner, Upakit Pachariyangkun, who was serving as a Thai Senator at the time of the deal.
The duo arranged the illicit sales through a Thai proxy company listed as the official seller in the draft agreements. Intercepted communications between Tun Min Latt and Upakit made explicit references to 200 kilograms of gold having already been successfully transacted. However, JFM underscored that it could not independently verify whether that initial physical transfer of bullion was fully concluded.
The broader 48 million USD deal with the AIF Group ultimately collapsed in mid-2021, driven by internal disagreements regarding financial performance guarantees and complex operational procedures between the corporate entities.
Beyond this single operation, JFM highlighted that Senior General Min Aung Hlaing continues to directly enrich his immediate family by systematically plundering Myanmar’s vast natural gold resources, exploiting state assets via heavily sanctioned military-owned business cartels.
“The military junta operates fundamentally as a transnational criminal syndicate,” stated Yadanar Maung, the official spokesperson for Justice For Myanmar. “The military council is solely responsible for a catastrophic surge in transnational crime, including this highly coordinated gold laundering plot documented by JFM. These ongoing illicit operations explicitly prove that the junta is not a legitimate government and must never be granted any form of diplomatic recognition.”
Yadanar Maung issued a sharp appeal to regional authorities, particularly the Government of Thailand, demanding immediate accountability and judicial action against entities enabling junta crimes on their soil. Furthermore, the watchdog urged the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union, Canada, and Australia to rapidly expand targeted economic sanctions against the junta’s sprawling crony networks.
JFM’s closing legal brief underscores that the military council has positioned itself at the nexus of a massive regional criminal network driving cyber scams, human trafficking, institutional money laundering, and illegal border casinos. The revenues generated from these transnational crimes directly bankroll the junta’s ongoing war crimes and crimes against humanity against the sovereign populace, posing a permanent and expanding security threat to the stability of entire Southeast Asian neighborhood.
