14 Indians, rescued from Cambodia job scammers, appeal for safe return
Rescued victims of a job scam forced into cyber fraud seek Indian embassy's help for repatriation
Fourteen Indians, trafficked to Cambodia and forced into cyber fraud, have appealed to the Indian embassy for a swift return to India.
The men, mostly from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, were rescued by local police and are now staying at an NGO, according to a report by NDTV.
Hello Sir 🙏 All these people are residents of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar of India, these people were trapped in scam work in Cambodia, so perhaps they were rescued by Indian Embassy and given to Cambodia Police, now these people are being given to some N.G.O.👉 pic.twitter.com/6Bu3xntszU
— Suraj Jaiswal (@SurajJa49737575) July 19, 2024
Job scam exposed
Reports reveal a job scam that trapped over 5,000 Indians in Cambodia, compelling them into illegal cyber activities.
Earlier this year, the government said that around 250 Indians had been "rescued and repatriated."
Initially promised legitimate jobs, they were coerced into unlawful online tasks, according to India's foreign ministry.
Forced cyber fraud
Upon arriving in Siem Reap, their passports were confiscated and they were forced to work in "cyber scamming" call centres targeting Indians, said the NDTV report.
Awareness of the scam grew late last year when a senior government employee reported being defrauded of over ₹67 lakh.
Police and govt actions
On December 30, Odisha's Rourkela Police dismantled a cyber-crime syndicate and arrested eight suspects involved in the trafficking scheme.
The Indian Embassy previously issued an advisory, urging job seekers to use authorised agents approved by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).
The embassy pointed out that fake jobs were often for roles such as 'Digital Sales and Marketing Executives' or 'Customer Support Service' by dubious companies engaged in call-centre scams and cryptocurrency fraud.