Efforts to shut down online scam centers in Myanmar appeared to gain momentum on Monday as a top Chinese security official visited both sides of the Thai-Myanmar border ahead of expected large-scale repatriations of workers in the illicit industry.

Myanmar’s military government said it is ready to hand over about 1,000 foreign nationals rescued from cyber scam centers near the Thai border as authorities vowed to intensify a crackdown against transnational criminal groups.

Thailand has received 260 human trafficking victims, more than half of them Ethiopians, from Myanmar, its army said on Thursday, in a massive repatriation that comes amid a mounting crackdown on scam centers operating along a porous border. Sean Hogan has more.

Myanmar authorities detained 273 foreigners from scam compounds along the border with Thailand on Monday, as a senior Chinese official visited frontier towns on both sides in a widening crackdown on illegal online operations.

The regime claims it is working with China to break apart online scam operations near the Chinese border in northern Shan State.

Thailand's army says some 260 people believed to have been trafficked and trapped into working in online scam centers are to be repatriated after they were rescued from Myanmar.

More than 250 people rescued from online scam centers in Myanmar were handed over to Thailand on Feb. 12, a senior Thai army official said, following a series of crackdowns on the illegal operations.

Thai authorities say they are requesting arrest warrants for three leaders of an ethnic Karen militia believed to be harboring online scam syndicates.

The scam center victims are mostly from Asian countries including China and India while some others came from East Africa, according to Myanmar’s Ministry of Information.

Some 7,000 people rescued from illegal call centre operations in Myanmar were waiting be transferred to Thailand, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said on Wednesday. The government is acting quickly to resolve this problem,