Myanmar military conglomerate officials arrested in rare corruption probe

Three senior officials at one of Myanmar’s most powerful military-owned conglomerates have been detained over alleged corruption involving import permits for private companies, in a rare investigation into financial misconduct within the country’s military establishment. All three are retired military officers working for Myanma Economic Holdings Limited (MEHL), a sprawling conglomerate controlled by the armed forces with interests in mining, manufacturing, transportation and trade. The detentions are unusual for an institution so deeply intertwined with Myanmar’s military leadership. The three officials were taken for questioning by military intelligence in the capital Naypyitaw on August 26, one day after irregularities involving an import application came to light. They are retired Maj-Gen Maung Maung Soe, head of MEHL’s General Administration Department and its third-ranking official; retired Col. Khin Maung Naing, an official in its finance department; and retired Brig-Gen Aung Thein Oo, a director of the MEHL-controlled shipping company Myanma Five Star Line. Maung Maung Soe has now been dismissed from MEHL for alleged abuse of authority. Khin Maung Naing was involved in preparing documents related to the import, while Aung Thein Oo was involved in transporting the goods. The case centres on an attempt by Fu Xing Brothers Group of Companies—a Chinese-Myanmar business group with longstanding commercial ties to MEHL—to import Chinese-made monosodium glutamate, or MSG. Fu Xing Brothers’ businesses include importing steel reinforcement bars used in construction. The company also has longstanding commercial ties with MEHL, including purchases of copper from the Letpadaung copper mine and sugar produced by MEHL-owned factories. The group is headed by Myanmar businessman Iai Tun. His wife, Nan Khin Nyunt, is also associated with the family’s business interests. Fu Xing Brothers also has a corporate presence in Singapore through Fu Xing Brothers Global Pte. Ltd. Fu Xing Brothers buys copper from Letpadaung in central Myanmar, a major mine operated as a joint venture between MEHL and Chinese state-owned company Wanbao. The copper is transported to China aboard vessels operated by Myanma Five Star Line, with Chinese goods carried back to Myanmar on return journeys. Fu Xing Brothers sought to use one such return shipment to bring MSG into Myanmar. To facilitate the import, Maung Maung Soe submitted a letter to the Commerce Department on MEHL’s behalf supporting the company’s request for permission to import the goods. Despite the Commerce Department having not yet approved the import, Fu Xing Brothers proceeded with paperwork for the shipment using MEHL’s support letter. The irregularity came to light on August 25, and the three MEHL officials were detained the following morning. No Fu Xing Brothers representatives are known to have been detained. The case is particularly significant because import permits have become extremely valuable in Myanmar. Investigation brings further dealings to light Since the military seized power in 2021, the authorities have imposed increasingly tight controls on imports and access to foreign currency as the country struggled with foreign exchange shortages. Private businesses can face considerable difficulties obtaining permission and foreign currency to bring goods into the country, while restrictions have contributed to shortages and higher prices for imported products. MEHL, by contrast, sits at the heart of the military’s commercial empire and has close institutional links to the same establishment that controls the ministries and agencies regulating foreign trade. Documents seen by Myanmar Now indicate that the Fu Xing Brothers case was not an isolated instance of MEHL seeking import approvals for private companies. Import permit applications seen by Myanmar Now show that MEHL sought permission from the commerce authorities on behalf of at least 11 private companies to import a combined 6,000 tonnes of iron, steel and plastic raw materials. Nine companies sought permission through MEHL to import a total of 5,000 tonnes of iron and steel. Handing Co., Ltd is listed for 1,000 tonnes. Kawa International Trading Co. Ltd, A & H Co. Ltd, Empire Construction Materials Trading Co. Ltd, Senior Groups Co. Ltd, M4 Mega Co. Ltd, Benchmark Steel & Enterprise Co. Ltd, Manikuta Co. Ltd and Modern International Co. Ltd are each listed for 500 tonnes. Two other companies—Myanmar Energy King Co. Ltd and Rixs International Co. Ltd—sought permits to import 500 tonnes each of plastic raw-material granules. It remains unclear what financial arrangements existed between MEHL and the companies, whether all the applications were ultimately approved, or how many other private businesses may have used similar arrangements. There is no evidence that the 11 companies named in the applications engaged in wrongdoing. What makes the records significant is that the applications span the leadership of two successive MEHL chairmen: former chairman Lt-Gen Hsan Oo and current chairman Lt-Gen Zaw Hein. That implies that MEHL’s role in seeking import approvals for private companies was broader than the single Fu Xing Brothers transaction now at the centre of the investigation. It also raises the question: why are three retired officers being investigated while the generals who presided over MEHL during the wider import dealings have so far faced no known scrutiny? Among the detained officials, Maung Maung Soe is the most senior. He is the former commander of the Western Command, which oversees Rakhine State. He was removed from his military position following the army’s brutal 2017 campaign against the Rohingya which was marked by massacres and widespread destruction, and forced more than 700,000 Rohingya into neighbouring Bangladesh. His removal came as the military faced intense international criticism over atrocities committed against the Rohingya. Despite being dismissed from his army position, Maung Maung Soe was then quietly appointed head of the General Administration Department at MEHL—a much-coveted position at the heart of the military’s sprawling business empire. He later rose to become one of the conglomerate’s most senior officials. Former Western Command chief Maj-Gen Maung Maung Soe, who later served as head of General Administration at military-owned Myanma Economic Holdings Limited (MEHL). (Photo: Ministry of Information) Junta leader loyalists evade scrutiny Maung Maung Soe’s detention represents a rare instance of a senior figure inside the military’s business establishment being investigated for alleged financial misconduct. But the investigation has so far stopped short of MEHL’s serving and former chairmen. Current chairman Lt-Gen Zaw Hein is a longtime protégé of junta leader Min Aung Hlaing. Zaw Hein previously served as Min Aung Hlaing’s personal staff officer. He later commanded Light Infantry Division 11 and headed the Defence Services Academy before becoming head of the Naypyitaw Command in August 2021. He was subsequently appointed commander of the Yangon Command in 2023. Myanmar Now previously reported that Zaw Hein was regarded as a key Min Aung Hlaing loyalist whose rapid rise through the military reflected his close personal relationship with the military leader. He is also the son of former Brig-Gen Thein Aung, a former chief minister of Ayeyarwady Region and senior figure in the military-aligned Union Solidarity and Development Party. Zaw Hein became MEHL chairman in January 2026. He was accompanying Min Aung Hlaing on his trip to Russia and Belarus when the Fu Xing Brothers import case emerged. Lt-Gen Zaw Hein, the military’s Adjutant General and current chair of military-owned Myanma Economic Holdings Limited (MEHL). (Photo: Ministry of Information) Zaw Hein’s predecessor, Lt-Gen Hsan Oo, is another longstanding Min Aung Hlaing loyalist. He now serves as natural resources and environmental conservation minister in the junta government formed following this year’s military-controlled elections. The ministry is one of Myanmar’s most lucrative, overseeing the country’s mining and logging industries, and the exploitation of valuable natural resources. Hsan Oo’s new position also brings the story back to Letpadaung, where Fu Xing Brothers has longstanding business dealings. The copper mine operates as a joint venture between MEHL and Chinese state-owned company Wanbao, and Hsan Oo’s ministry now oversees the mining sector in which the military-owned conglomerate has major commercial interests. Neither Hsan Oo nor Zaw Hein is known to be under investigation despite the fact that MEHL sought approvals for private companies during the periods in which the conglomerate was headed by the two generals. There are doubts within MEHL that either man will face serious consequences because of their close personal relationships with Min Aung Hlaing, according to a source familiar with the conglomerate. Myanmar Now contacted officials at the Ministry of Commerce, junta spokesperson Khaing Khaing Soe, and Fu Xing Brothers for comment on the allegations and the investigation, but had not received responses at the time of publication.

Myanmar military conglomerate officials arrested in rare corruption probe

The detention of three senior MEHL officials has exposed wider import dealings at the conglomerate, and raised questions over whether the probe will reach generals close to the junta leader

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