Australian executive in Myanmar linked to alleged financial misconduct is freed from jail

BANGKOK (AP) — An Australian businessperson who served as executive director of the American Chamber of Commerce in Myanmar was released from jail after more than 100 days of detention on financial misappropriation allegations, a Myanmar legal official said Wednesday.

Ye Khaung Kyaw, also known as Danny, was freed following a ruling by a court in Yangon, Myanmar’s largest city, according to a legal official familiar with the case, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to release information. Ye Khaung Kyaw and the two other men charged in connection with the case have said the allegations against them are groundless.

Acting Police Brig. Gen. Soe Lin Aung, a spokesperson for Myanmar’s Home Affairs Ministry, confirmed that the court concluded proceedings in Ye Khaung Kyaw’s case on Tuesday but declined to provide further details. It remains unclear whether he was convicted, had the charges dismissed or withdrawn, or was ordered to be deported.

Ye Khaung Kyaw was detained in June around the same time as former chamber president Adam Castillo, a U.S. businessperson who was released last week and deported without explanation.

The chamber’s current board accused Ye Khaung Kyaw, Castillo and former board member Munimul Islam of breach of trust and misappropriation of association assets in connection with a $300,000 contract with the Washington-based lobbying firm Mercury Public Affairs. Islam lives outside Myanmar and has not been detained. The chamber is usually known as AmCham.

Myanmar’s military-backed government released no official statement. Officials at the court and the police station in Yangon’s Pabedan township, where Ye Khaung Kyaw faced trial, did not respond to requests for comment. Authorities in Myanmar, which is currently in the midst of a civil war, rarely speak to the international media.

Supporters of the three men said the allegations were baseless and contradicted by documentary evidence.

The police complaint did not specify Ye Khaung Kyaw’s exact role in the alleged misconduct during his tenure as executive director. AmCham’s complaint centered on Castillo’s creation of the U.S.-Burma Economic Forum as a lobbying organization during his presidency from 2023 to 2025 and a contract signed with Mercury in 2024.

In its annual report issued in May, AmCham accused Castillo of improperly collecting funds using the association’s name. It said the board had not approved the agreement, received any money or services, or disclosed the matter to auditors.

However, AmCham documents obtained by The Associated Press appear to contradict the annual report.

A signed board resolution showed the board approved the lobbying initiative, authorized hiring Mercury, and agreed that Islam’s company, Misfit Technologies, would provide sponsorship.

Current AmCham Executive Director Myat Phyu The called the resolution a fabrication, although other records on the chamber’s website indicated that the board was aware of the arrangement.

A Misfit employee, who spoke anonymously for fear of professional retribution, said fees were paid through Misfit’s U.S. office because American sanctions made payments from Myanmar nearly impossible. Mercury disclosed the payments to U.S. authorities under the Lobbying Disclosure Act.

Australia’s Foreign Ministry confirmed that it had provided consular assistance to an Australian in Myanmar but declined to comment further, citing privacy obligations.