The Kokang armed group, the  Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) is arresting people on drug charges and then demanding ransoms for their release in the MNDAA-held Hsenwi (Theinni) Town, Shan State.

MNDAA soldiers are carrying out surprise raids on people’s houses and arresting young people and middle-aged men for allegedly using drugs.

On 22 October 2024, 40-year-old Sai Kyaw (not his real name), a resident of Ward No. 1 in Hsenwi, was forcibly taken away by MNDAA troops who accused him of drug use. He has not yet been released and the MNDAA is demanding a ransom of two million kyats for his release, according to his wife.

She said to Shan Herald: “They came to our house late at night, saying they wanted to question my husband and took him away. It's been about 15 days now, and he still hasn't been released. Instead, we were told that if we paid two million MMK, he would be released.”

The MNDAA are holding the arrested people at Hsenwi Myoma Police Station, currently over 200 people, including women, are being detained there, according to local eye witnesses.

Some of the arrested were released after paying two million kyats, but those who could not pay remain detained, according to Sai Kyaw’s wife.

She said: “Two million MMK is not a small amount of money, especially since jobs are scarce in Hsenwi right now. We tried to sell our family car, but no one is buying it. We also don’t have any valuable gold or jewellery to sell. Meanwhile, junta aircraft are frequently dropping bombs on the town, and we don’t know where to run. In this situation, we feel so lost that we don't know what to do next.”

The MNDAA has yet to comment on the reports about arrests of Hsenwi residents.