Thailand warrant report unsettles Karen BGF near Mae Sot

Karen residents and armed groups across the Thai-Myanmar border from Tak province have been seeking information from Thai officials and local people after reports that Thailand's Department of Special Investigation (DSI) obtained an arrest warrant for a Border Guard Force (BGF) leader.

The warrant, dated 27 July 2026, concerns Major General Saw Moe Htawng, also referred to as Moe Htawng, who leads the BGF force responsible for security in Myawaddy, Karen State, opposite Mae Sot district in Tak.

Border groups seek answers

On 31 July, Karen people and several armed groups on the Myanmar side of the Tak border were reported to be making enquiries after the warrant from Thailand's Criminal Court was circulated.

The report said the DSI warrant alleges involvement in human trafficking and links to call-centre and online scam networks operating in Myanmar's Myawaddy area.

News of a Thai warrant had first circulated on 29 July. It was reported to have been issued on 27 July, with allegations connected to trafficking and scam networks in Myawaddy.

Allegations centre on border scam zones

The areas named include Shwe Kokko, opposite Ban Wang Kaeo in Mae Sot subdistrict, Mae Sot district, and areas extending towards the location opposite Ban Wang Pha in Mae Ramat district.

KK Park, opposite Ban Mae Ku Mai Tha Sung in Mae Ku subdistrict, Mae Sot district, was also named in the report.

According to the allegations, Major General Moe Htawng was involved in a human-trafficking case and either knew about or benefited from allowing Chinese criminal investors to establish technology-crime and online-fraud centres in the area.

The DSI had previously pursued investigative leads involving several senior leaders of this ethnic minority group, and the current case was said to be an expansion of those inquiries.

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1 August 2026