Chinese-Cambodian gambling kingpin to be extradited: Thai court
Appeal Court clears path for 90-day extradition deadline
A Chinese-Cambodian man accused of running a vast gambling ring will be extradited to China, following a Thai court ruling upholding an earlier decision.
The Thai Court of Appeal has upheld a lower court’s ruling to extradite She Zhijiang, a dual Chinese-Cambodian national accused of masterminding a vast illegal online gambling operation, back to China. The decision, announced yesterday, November 10, paves the way for his return to face prosecution under the 1993 extradition treaty between Thailand and China.
She, who has gained notoriety in China and beyond, is alleged to be the ringleader of an enormous online betting empire. According to the Office of the Attorney General (OAG), the man operated 239 gambling websites, with an estimated turnover of over 2.775 trillion yuan (approximately 12.6 trillion baht).
Chinese police claim the platforms under the Chinese-Cambodian criminal’s control attracted over 330,000 users and caused financial damage totalling more than 150 million yuan.
She’s reach reportedly extended well beyond cyberspace. He is believed to be a key player in the controversial Asia-Pacific New City project in the Shwe Kokko Special Economic Zone in Myanmar, where he is said to co-own and operate two casinos. Additionally, he has been linked to the Dara Sakor development in Cambodia’s Koh Kong province, an area infamously tied to scam call centres targeting Chinese nationals.
Through these ventures, She and his associates are accused of drawing thousands of Chinese citizens into illegal gambling schemes, reaping massive profits in the process.
The case first emerged in August 2022, when Chinese officials requested She’s provisional arrest. The Thai OAG approved the request and, working in coordination with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Department of Treaties and Legal Affairs, and the Royal Thai Police, successfully detained She that month. A formal extradition request followed in November 2022.
On May 25, a lower court ordered She’s extradition. However, he challenged the ruling last month, arguing that sections 19 and 21 of the Extradition Act violated the Thai constitution, reported Bangkok Post.
On October 22, Thailand’s Constitutional Court unanimously ruled that the contested sections were lawful. Following this, the Appeal Court reaffirmed the initial ruling, ordering that the Chinese-Cambodian kingpin be extradited within 90 days of the final judgment.
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