(ECNS) - Police from China, the United States and the United Arab Emirates jointly arrested 276 suspects in a crackdown on telecom and online fraud operations based in Dubai, China's Ministry of Public Security said Sunday.
The ministry said the operation marked the first joint law enforcement action by the three countries targeting telecom and cyber fraud networks in the Gulf city. Authorities dismantled nine fraud centers during the operation.
According to investigators, the scam groups used social media platforms to establish romantic relationships with victims before persuading them to invest in supposedly high-return cryptocurrency projects.
Chinese authorities described the operation as a major outcome of international law enforcement cooperation and said police would continue expanding collaboration with other countries to combat cross-border telecom fraud.
Cross-border online scam operations have become a growing concern for China in recent years, with networks often operating overseas while targeting victims in China and other countries.
Chinese police solved 258,000 telecom fraud cases in 2025, according to official data. Authorities also intercepted 3.6 billion fraudulent phone calls and 3.3 billion scam text messages during nationwide anti-fraud campaigns.
Earlier this year, Ministry of Public Security spokesperson Zhang Ming said Chinese police had arrested 542 alleged financiers, organizers and key members of telecom fraud syndicates.
(By Zhang Jiahao)
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