The U.S. Treasury announced sanctions on a notorious Macao triad mastermind, for his expanding criminal activities throughout Southeast Asia under China’s Belt and Road Initiative.

Wan Kuok-koi, better known as “Broken Tooth”, is the leader of the 14K Triad, one of the largest Chinese organized criminal groups in the world.

In a statement released on Wednesday, the Treasury said that the group engages in “a range of criminal activities including drug trafficking, illegal gambling, racketeering and human trafficking.

“In addition to bribery, corruption, and graft, the 14K Triad has engaged in similar illicit activities in Palau.”

Sanctions would also be imposed on three entities owned or controlled by Wan, including the Hong Kong-based Dongmei Group and the World Hongmen History and Culture Association, which the Treasury said has managed to co-opt elite figures in Malaysia and Cambodia.

“This continues a pattern of overseas Chinese actors trying to paper over illegal criminal activities by framing their actions in terms of China’s Belt and Road Initiative, the China Dream, or other major initiatives of the CCP,” the Treasury continued.

The association is reportedly spreading across Southeast Asia, including establishing a security company specialized in protecting Belt and Road investments.

The U.S. Treasury also claimed Wan to be a member of the CCP Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, but Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying clarified on Thursday that he is not.

Wan responded to the sanctions on Thursday, calling them “nothing but paper tigers” on his social media.

Back in 2018, Wan voiced his support for the state-backed infrastructure project, saying his association would be a “patriotic community organization.”

The triad boss was arrested after a bomb destroyed the car of Macao’s director of investigative police, who was jogging when the vehicle exploded. He was jailed in November 1999 and released in 2012.

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