China, the United States, and the United Arab Emirates police carried out their first joint international law enforcement operation targeting telecom and online fraud in Dubai on or before May 17, 2026. The coordinated effort dismantled nine fraud dens and resulted in the arrest of 276 suspects linked to online scams [1, 2].
The fraudulent schemes involved gangs who used social media to create fake romantic relationships. They gained victims' trust before luring them into investing in purported high-return cryptocurrency programs, which turned out to be scams [1, 2].
Chinese authorities regard the operation as a significant milestone in global police cooperation. A Chinese Ministry of Public Security official said the police "will continue to deepen pragmatic cooperation with more countries, carry out joint crackdowns, thoroughly dismantle telecom fraud dens, and make every effort to apprehend suspects involved in such crimes to effectively safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of people in all countries" [2].
China has been intensifying its domestic crackdown on telecom fraud. In 2025, Chinese police solved 258,000 cases nationwide while blocking 3.6 billion scam calls and 3.3 billion scam text messages. They directly counseled over 6.7 million people suspected of being targeted or involved in such scams [1].
Special operations in China last year, including those named "断流", "拔钉", and "斩链", led to the arrest of 542 kingpins and key members of telecom fraud syndicates [1].
The May 2026 Dubai crackdown marks the first cooperative effort between China, the US, and UAE police forces focused on telecom and online fraud. Chinese police plan to expand such pragmatic collaborations with other countries to dismantle cross-border criminal networks further [1, 2].
