Cyber slavery: inside Cambodia's online scam gangs (UPDATED)

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Re: Cyber slavery: inside Cambodia's online scam gangs (UPDATED)

Post by CEOCambodiaNews »

Vietnamese Scammers Working in Cambodia

Human trafficking victim tricks to sell close friend to Cambodia
By Danh Toai, Pham Linh February 18, 2023 | 11:00 pm PT
A man in Binh Dinh Province tricked his close friend into becoming an illegal worker in Cambodia in order to avoid "being beaten" by his employer.
Huynh Thanh Nhon, from the central province's capital town Quy Nhon, has been detained for four months by the police in Binh Dinh while he is under investigation for human trafficking.

The police said Nhon had cooperated with several people to traffic people into Cambodia to work against their will. Victims were not allowed to leave their workplaces, were beaten and left to starve for several hours. They were forced to pay money if they wanted to go back to Vietnam.

Nhon said he himself was a victim of human trafficking, who was tricked into going to Cambodia and work in precarious situations, unable to return to Vietnam due to his confinement.

He said he was introduced to a job by an unnamed man online in February last year. The man claimed the job's salary was US$700-$1,000 a month. Nhon then traveled to HCMC as requested, where he was taken to his work site by a car. The people there then instructed him to create multiple online accounts to trick others into joining the group.

"After nearly two weeks, I realized I was in Cambodia and not Vietnam, because I was not allowed to go outside," Nhon said.

"Every day, I had to work 16 hours and could only rest at night," he said. "If I didn't do my job properly, I would be beaten, left to starve, or sold to another place."

A few months after he first arrived there, Nhon was sold to another company owned by Chinese people, and was forced to do the same job. He says he had to run cyber scams to make people into paying the company VND200-300 million ($8,396-$12,594) per month, or he would be forced to work overtime and see his salary reduced.

Nhon said he also had to trick people into joining the company, explaining that he was promised $100 for every person he recruited.
https://e.vnexpress.net/news/news/human ... 72208.html
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Re: Cyber slavery: inside Cambodia's online scam gangs (UPDATED)

Post by CEOCambodiaNews »

Kinky details are surfacing: According to a latest report on Cambodian cyberslave crime gangs, a Taiwanese woman who was arrested on charges of trafficking women to Cambodia for sex work, has also been accused of participating in group punishments where a male member of the crime gang was made to dress in women's underwear.

JOB SCAM/Suspect in Cambodia fraud ring charged with human trafficking
02/23/2023 05:48 PM
Taipei, Feb. 23 (CNA) A 26-year-old woman who was arrested last year on suspicion of luring Taiwanese to Cambodia and forcing them to participate in scams and sex work was indicted in January on human trafficking charges, Taichung police said Thursday.

At a press conference, the Taichung City Police Department's Criminal Investigation Corps said that following an investigation, it arrested the suspect, surnamed Wu (吳), last September at Taoyuan International Airport as she returned from Cambodia.

At the time, a request by prosecutors to detain Wu for four months was approved by the Taichung District Court, it said.

Taichung police alleged that Wu collaborated with Cambodian criminal organizations in the operation of several fraud and prostitution rings.

In one of the schemes, they said, Wu posted ads on Facebook and Instagram offering women in Taiwan high salaries to work in Cambodian hostess clubs.

While the victims were initially put to work in hostess clubs, if any of them expressed a desire to quit, they would be "sold" to area hotels and forced into sex work, the police department said, based on statements taken from victims after they returned to Taiwan.

At the press conference, police said they had also obtained cell phone video in which Wu and others, during an internal dispute with another member of the criminal ring, forced him to wear women's underwear before beating him up.

According to the department, Wu was indicted in January on suspected violations of the Human Trafficking Prevention Act and offenses against freedom under the Criminal Code.
(By Hau Hsueh-chin and Matthew Mazzetta)
Enditem/AW
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Re: Cyber slavery: inside Cambodia's online scam gangs (UPDATED)

Post by CEOCambodiaNews »

Philippines
UPDATE on post583228.html#p583228

8 Pinoy job scam victims in Cambodia rescued
ABS-CBN News
Posted at Feb 25 2023 03:04 PM
MANILA — Eight Filipinos in Cambodia who fell victim to online job scammers were rescued by authorities there, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said on Saturday.

They were deceived into working for an online scamming and catfishing syndicate in Cambodia's Ouddar Meanchey and Kampot provinces, the DFA said in a statement.

The eight were rescued by the Cambodian National Police and investigated by the Anti-Cyber Crime Unit before they were turned over to the General Department of Immigration.

The DFA, in coordination with the Philippine Embassy in Phnom Penh, said it provided welfare assistance and arranged for the eventual release of the Filipinos.
https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/02/25/23/ ... ia-rescued
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Re: Cyber slavery: inside Cambodia's online scam gangs (UPDATED)

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Philippines Continued ^^
Local media are suggesting that there were some 'bureaucratic' difficulties concerning the repatriation of trafficked Filipino workers from Cambodia.

Weeks-long ‘negotiations’ delayed repatriation of OFWs from Cambodia
Feb 27, 2023 7:24 PM PHT
Michelle Abad
MANILA, Philippines – Overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who were trafficked and forced to work in a Cambodia-based cryptocurrency scam had to wait for weeks before their return to the Philippines, as the Cambodian government had processes that required “many negotiations” before they were cleared to go home, Senator Risa Hontiveros said on Monday, February 27.

The Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs earlier announced the return of eight trafficked OFWs to the Philippines on Saturday, February 25.
https://www.rappler.com/nation/overseas ... -cambodia/
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Re: Cyber slavery: inside Cambodia's online scam gangs (UPDATED)

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CEOCambodiaNews wrote:Philippines Continued ^^
Local media are suggesting that there were some 'bureaucratic' difficulties concerning the repatriation of trafficked Filipino workers from Cambodia.

….

Overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who were trafficked and forced to work in a Cambodia-based cryptocurrency scam had to wait for weeks before their return to the Philippines, as the Cambodian government had processes that required “many negotiations” before they were cleared to go home, Senator Risa Hontiveros said on Monday, February 27.
Somebody (possibly many somebodies) in the government is getting rich off of the saving victims schemes.

My faith in the government increases with every story I read.
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Re: Cyber slavery: inside Cambodia's online scam gangs (UPDATED)

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Published last month:
Police Claim Japanese, Malaysian Nationals Removed From Compound Not Confined Against Will
6 February 2023
Sorn Sarath
Police claim 19 Japanese nationals who were removed from a Sihanoukville compound last week were not held against their will and are being investigated for alleged criminal activity, according to National Police spokesperson Chhay Kim Khoeun.

“There is no confinement in the case, but we have another clue that they may have committed illegal business operations,” Kim Khoeun said in a Telegram message to CamboJA. “We have the clues, and we are investigating because we have had a difficult time finding a Japanese translator, so we must be careful.”

Kim Khoeun said the authorities learned of the Japanese after receiving information from the Japanese Embassy to Phnom Penh. Following the investigation, authorities will decide whether or not to bring charges against the Japanese nationals under immigration and gambling laws.

The Japanese Embassy told CamboJA in an email statement that 19 Japanese citizens, all males between 20 to 50 years old, were “found” at a Sihanoukville hotel on January 24.

“The Cambodian Police has been collecting information from them and the Embassy would like to refrain from making any comments on further details,” the Embassy said. “The Embassy always advises Japanese nationals to give necessary caution about safety in Cambodia.”

The 19 Japanese nationals had rented eight hotel rooms at Mary Beach Hotel and Resort in Sihanoukville’s Buon commune, according to hotel staff. Authorities found no evidence of confinement and torture, according to Preah Sihanouk police chief Chuon Narin.

“They have proper documents, passports and valid visas,” Narin said.

Chea Sreypich, the receptionist at Mary Beach Hotel and Resort, said that the Japanese nationals had rented the hotel rooms for long-term stays and said she believed they had not been confined. Another staffer said the Japanese nationals were allowed to leave the hotel.

“We [at the hotel] were also surprised when the police came down, as there was no confinement because they could walk, exercise and swim at the hotel as normal, like the other guests,” she said, adding that the hotel has been operating as normal.

Japanese nationals were not the only foreign citizens recently removed from alleged scam compounds. Five Malaysian nationals were forced to work in Cambodia-based scam operations and were deported back to Malaysia last week after being rescued, according to Malay Mail. Malaysian authorities said there were at least 300 Malaysian nationals who lodged complaints about involuntary confinement, while 113 victims remain stranded in Cambodia, Laos and other countries, the Malay Mail reported.

Malaysians are reportedly considered valuable for scam operations due to their English and Chinese language skills.
https://cambojanews.com/police-claim-ja ... inst-will/
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Re: Cyber slavery: inside Cambodia's online scam gangs (UPDATED)

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Cambodian job scam: Embassy to expedite repatriation of Malaysian victims, says envoy

PHNOM PENH, March 29 — The Malaysian embassy here will expedite the repatriation process of 12 Malaysian citizens who had fallen victim to job scams in Cambodia.

Malaysian ambassador to Cambodia, Datuk Eldeen Husaini Mohd Hashim said his team had held discussions with Cambodian police and immigration department regarding the release of 12 individuals, comprising 11 in Sihanoukville and one here.

He said the 12 Malaysians comprising 11 men and a woman, aged between 20 and 25, were rescued by the Cambodian authorities on March 25, before being temporarily placed in a depot until matters relating to their release was completed.

“If all goes smoothly, the 12 individuals will be sent back by the end of this week or early next week, depending on the documentation process,” he told Bernama here today.
...
He said currently, the Malaysian embassy was cooperating with the Cambodian authorities to find 12 more Malaysian citizens who have fallen victim to job scam syndicates here.
https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia ... nvoy/62153
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Re: Cyber slavery: inside Cambodia's online scam gangs (UPDATED)

Post by Kung-fu Hillbilly »

Image

by Cait Kelly
Sun April 2nd, 2023


When the men he was talking to asked to video call, a model would take Rahim’s place and chat with them.

As the months dragged on, Rahim – who is using a pseudonym for privacy reasons – became desperate for a job. So when an acquaintance on his island offered him work in Cambodia, he took it.

When Rahim was recruited, he was told the job was to market cryptocurrency over platforms such as Facebook, WhatsApp and TikTok, build a relationship with the buyer and encourage them to buy as much as possible.

After arriving in Cambodia at the start of May last year, Rahim was taken to a compound with about 70 other people, he says. His passport was confiscated and he was taught how to scam victims online, tricking Australians, Europeans and Chinese into handing over their money.

Rahim’s job was to garner the trust of victims. He would pretend to be an attractive woman, targeting men who seemed affluent as well as older Australians who often had money sitting in the bank.

“If I made a mistake on my job I was put in a dark room,” he says. “I couldn’t escape from the room. I wasn’t allowed to eat anything for a week.”

Rahim wanted to go home but his captors told him he needed to pay A$3,000 to leave – money he says he did not have and could not make.

After three months Rahim and another worker made contact with the Indonesian embassy and IJM, which helped evacuate them and nine other Indonesian nationals.

full article. https://www.theguardian.com/law/2023/ap ... ustralians
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Re: Cyber slavery: inside Cambodia's online scam gangs (UPDATED)

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Scammers in Cambodia podcast Al Jazeera

https://www.aljazeera.com/podcasts/2023 ... so-victims
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Re: Cyber slavery: inside Cambodia's online scam gangs (UPDATED)

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Follow up to:
post585549.html#p585549

April 7, 2023
Police seek 19 Japanese nationals on suspicion of running phone scams from Cambodian hotel
Khmer Times
Tokyo police have obtained arrest warrants for 19 Japanese nationals on suspicion of running phone scams from Cambodia targeting people in Japan.

NHK News reports that investigative sources say Cambodian authorities searched a hotel room in the southern city of Sihanoukville in January and discovered a list of Japanese citizens believed to be targets in a fraud scheme.

The sources say Japanese police found that the list includes the name of a Tokyo resident in her 60s who was defrauded of about 250,000 yen, or some 1,900 dollars, in electronic money in January.

The sources say the victim had received a phone call in which she was fraudulently told she was behind on a payment for an online service.

They say Tokyo police suspect involvement by 19 Japanese nationals staying at a Cambodian hotel.

The police are expected to transfer the suspects from Cambodia to Japan for their imminent arrest.

The police believe the suspects carried out phone scams from Cambodia because they thought the operation was less likely to be uncovered than in Japan.
NHK News
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