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.

Efforts to shut down online scam centers in Myanmar appear to gain momentum with a visit by a top Chinese official to the border zone ahead of expected large-scale repatriations of workers in the illi

Foreign nationals from several countries have been held at the border and forced to participate in a variety of scams.

The Chinese group will be flown back on a commercial aircraft on Thursday from Thailand's Mae Sot, which borders Myawaddy town in Myanmar, Thai Defence Ministry spokesperson Major General Thanathip Sawangsaeng told reporters.