You think your corporate compliance checklist keeps you safe abroad. It doesn't.
Operating in a country run by a military junta means the ground shifts under your feet daily. If you need proof, look at Adam Castillo. He is the former president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Myanmar and a former US Marine. On June 11, 2026, authorities arrested him right at the Yangon airport as he flew back into the country.
The official charge sounds like a routine boardroom fight. A Yangon police source says a current director of a business organization he used to head filed a lawsuit. They accuse Castillo of criminal breach of trust over a property. That is a charge that carries up to ten years in prison. The American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in Myanmar has separately noted that it is looking into suspicious financial transactions involving former board members.
But if you look closely at the timing, you see this isn't just about accounting or real estate records.
The High Cost of Writing a Memoir under a Junta
Castillo did something incredibly risky for a foreign executive living in a dictatorship. He wrote a book.
His memoir, Finding Our Voice: A Story of Leadership in Crisis and the American Spirit Abroad, details his time managing his security firm, AGS Myanmar, during the bloody 2021 military coup. The marketing blurb describes him dodging bullets and salvaging a dying chamber of commerce while other expats fled.
Worse for his safety, he didn't just criticize the military. He also took aim at Washington. He visited the White House last year to tell officials that US sanctions weren't working. He argued that American interests would be better served by engaging with the regime to secure access to rare earth minerals.
He just finished an international promotional tour for that very book, wrapping up dates in Malaysia. He stepped off the plane in Yangon, expecting to return to his security business. Instead, a judge remanded him in custody for two weeks.
When you publish details about a regime's internal crisis, you become a target. It doesn't matter if your book advocates for more business investment or criticizes Western policies. Dictatorships do not appreciate nuance. They see external narratives as threats to their fragile legitimacy.
Why a Simple Lawsuit Becomes a Weapon
In a stable country, a dispute over corporate property or organizational funds lands in a civil court. You hire lawyers, exchange documents, and settle out of court.
In Myanmar, the legal system is an extension of the state. A criminal breach of trust charge allows the police to lock you up immediately. The military-backed government, led by Min Aung Hlaing who was recently sworn in as president following heavily engineered elections, uses these local business disputes to mask political crackdowns.
Foreign executives often assume their corporate status or their passport provides a shield. The US State Department acknowledged it knows about the detention of an American citizen in Yangon, but they refuse to say more due to privacy rules. History shows that Washington has very little leverage here.
Survival Steps for Expats in Unstable Markets
If you run operations or advise businesses in regions dealing with active civil conflict, you must change how you operate.
- Separate your commentary from your location. Never publish personal memoirs, political critiques, or insider accounts while you still hold assets or residency in the country. Wait until you have completely exited the market.
- Audit your legacy local partnerships. When leadership changes inside local business groups or chambers, old agreements can be twisted into legal traps. Ensure every property title, lease, and banking transaction from your tenure has a clear paper trail signed off by multiple current board members.
- Never assume a return flight is safe. If you have been publicizing internal conditions of a host country while abroad, do not fly back to resume business as usual. Run your local operations remotely through trusted local staff.
Castillo's security firm is still operating, but their founder is sitting in a cell. The lesson is simple. In an authoritarian state, your corporate network can turn on you in an instant, and your passport won't stop the prison door from locking.
