Sio Sam Ong ( Chinese: 小三王), literally meaning "Three Little Kings", or SSO, for short, is a leading Chinese triad in Malaysia; with a strong presence in the north (i.e.

Kedah Kedah (), also known by its honorific Darul Aman (Islam), Aman (دار الأمان; Arabic for 'The Safe Abode') and historically as Queda, is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia, located in the northwestern part of ...

Perlis Perlis (Kedah Malay language, Kedah Malay (Perlis dialect): ''Peghelih'') is a Negeri, state of Malaysia in the northwestern coast of Peninsular Malaysia. It is the smallest state in Malaysia by area and population. The state borders the Thai ...

). Mainly based in

Penang Penang is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia along the Strait of Malacca. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay Peninsula. Th ...

and

Selangor Selangor ( ; ), also known by the Arabic language, Arabic honorific Darul Ehsan, or "Abode of Sincerity", is one of the 13 states of Malaysia. It is on the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia and is bordered by Perak to the north, Pahang to the e ...

. It is widely considered to be one of the most powerful triads in the country. Like their counterparts in Singapore and Taiwan, the Sio Sam Ong mostly consists of the

Hokkien Hokkien ( , ) is a Varieties of Chinese, variety of the Southern Min group of Chinese language, Chinese languages. Native to and originating from the Minnan region in the southeastern part of Fujian in southeastern China, it is also referred ...

ethnic group.

Background

It is believed that Sio Sam Ong was established during the 1940s to 1950s; being mainly active in northern Malaysia. According to the Malaysian police, Sio Sam Ong is currently one of the most active triads after Aek En Sang, Ang Soon Toong, Salakau Singapore, Ghee Heng, Ang Bin Hoay and Chaun San in Malaysia. it is believed that they have around 500,000 members and involved in 100 countries. In Malaysia, they were actively involved in politics by joining the government coalition (

Barisan Nasional Barisan Nasional (BN; ) is a political coalition of Malaysia that was founded in 1974 as a coalition of centre-right and right-wing political parties to succeed the Alliance Party. It is the third largest political coalition with 30 seats in ...

) parties

United Malays National Organisation The United Malays National Organisation (Abbreviation, abbrev: UMNO; , PEKEMBAR) is a Conservatism, conservative, Nationalism, Malay nationalist political party in Malaysia. As the oldest national political party in the country (since its ince ...

(UMNO) and the

Malaysian Chinese Association The Malaysian Chinese Association (Abbreviation, abbrev: MCA; Malay language, Malay: ''Persatuan Cina Malaysia''), formerly known as the Malayan Chinese Association, is an ethnic List of political parties in Malaysia, political party in Malaysi ...

(MCA) to cover up their identity. They use the code of 3821 gang, and 36 international brothers/ red international army according to the hoax of Chinese triads history. The gang was formerly headed by Bull Head, Ong King Ee, nicknamed "Jackie Chan". According to Penang police, the triad has been involved in international

drug trafficking A drug is any chemical substance other than a nutrient or an essential dietary ingredient, which, when administered to a living organism, produces a biological effect. Consumption of drugs can be via inhalation, injection, smoking, ingestion, ...

kidnapping Kidnapping or abduction is the unlawful abduction and confinement of a person against their will, and is a crime in many jurisdictions. Kidnapping may be accomplished by use of force or fear, or a victim may be enticed into confinement by frau ...

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse committed with the necessary Intention (criminal law), intention as defined by the law in a specific jurisd ...

extortion Extortion is the practice of obtaining benefit (e.g., money or goods) through coercion. In most jurisdictions it is likely to constitute a criminal offence. Robbery is the simplest and most common form of extortion, although making unfounded ...

racketeering Racketeering is a type of organized crime in which the perpetrators set up a coercion, coercive, fraud, fraudulent, extortionary, or otherwise illegal coordinated scheme or operation (a "racket") to repeatedly or consistently collect a profit. ...

and

loansharking A loan shark is a person who offers loans at extremely high or illegal interest rates, has strict terms of collection, and generally operates outside the law, often using the threat of violence or other illegal, aggressive, and extortionate ...

at its height. Sio Sam Ong members were also suspected of involvement in at least 10 murders in the Penang in the late 1980s and early 1990s, including a notorious massacre at pre-wedding celebration in the

Sungai Petani Sungai Petani ( abbr. Sg. Petani or SP) is a city in Kuala Muda District, Kedah, Malaysia. The population of the municipal area of Sungai Petani is larger than Kedah's state capital, Alor Setar. It is located about 55 km south of Alor Set ...

district of

in September 1992, where six people were shot to death. In December of the same year, five skeletal remains with their hands tied behind their backs, believed to be Sio Sam Ong members who betrayed the gang, were exhumed from unmarked graves in Mount Erskine, Penang. Many of its high-ranking members are still high on the Malaysian Police wanted list.

References

Who Are The Triads Identified? at mynewsfocus.com
Organizations established in the 1940s 1940s establishments in British Malaya Triad groups Organized crime groups in Malaysia {{crime-org-stub