Myanmar Army troops have reportedly looted and resold local people’s property from houses and shops after regaining control of Mongmit town in Shan State.
The junta troops had retaken control of Mongmit on 27 January, and residents have still not been allowed to return to their homes.
According to a military source familiar with the looting, soldiers from the junta’s Light Infantry Battalion 267 looted items from homes and shops in Mongmit and LIB 276 soldiers also looted items belonging to locals from (nearby villages).
“At that time, they stole about ten times a day when residents could not enter the town. They transported the stolen items in vehicles – phones, motorcycles and anything they could find. Now they are reselling these items through their contacts in places in the lower part of the town, like Let Khoke Pin and Ma Gyi Pin villages. They loot and resell both used and new motorbikes.,” the source said.
Currently, the junta troops are reselling the looted local property to finance their expenses.
The looted used motorcycles are sold for at least 600,000 kyat each, while new motorcycles fetch over a million kyat, with the troops selling for whatever price they can get.
Similarly, on 27 January, LIB 276 troops in large trucks stole motorcycles worth over 200 million kyat from shops and showrooms on the main street in the center of Mongmit. According to eyewitnesses, they are also arresting and interrogating innocent civilians in the area.
As Mongmit is located on the border between northern Shan State and Mandalay Region, the Union Highway connecting Mogok-Mongmit-Mabein-Bhamo from Pyin Oo Lwin is also an important supply route for the military council to reinforce its troops.
In addition, it is a key route for the Three Brotherhood Alliance to transport weapons seized from junta forces during “Operation 1027” in northern Shan State to the People’s Defense Forces (PDFs) in Sagaing Region, according to military sources.
Although it has been over a month since the junta took control of Mongmit, the majority of residents have still not been able to return to their homes.
A Mongmit resident said, “Some have returned, but we can’t go back yet. Those who have houses have cleaned them up to live in. Those who don’t have houses are staying in monasteries. It will not be easy to rebuild the damaged and destroyed houses because the cost of materials and transportation is so high. Well-off people are even considering relocating to places like Mandalay and Pyin Oo Lwin. Our situation is still not certain.”
According to locals who have returned to their homes, more than 500 civilian houses were damaged in the clashes between Myanmar Army troops and the joint forces of the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and the PDFs in Mongmit.
In addition, many locals are afraid to return as they continue to face the threat of arrests, torture and killings by the junta forces against returning civilians.
Sent by Shan News.