Scam centres in Myanmar blamed for swindling billions from victims across the world are expanding fast just months after a crackdown that was supposed to eradicate them, an AFP investigation has found.

New buildings have been springing up inside the heavily guarded compounds around Myawaddy on the Thailand-Myanmar border at a dizzying pace, with others festooned with dishes for Elon Musk's Starlink internet service, satellite images and AFP drone footage show.

The revelations come as Britain and the United States imposed sanctions Tuesday on the "masterminds behind industrial-scale scam centres in Southeast Asia", freezing 19 London properties "linked to a multi-billion-pound network".

They include a mansion worth £12 million (nearly $16 million) on one of London's most expensive street

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