Centre mulls strategy to rescue 5,000 Indians forced to carry out cyber frauds in Cambodia

The Indian government is said to be engaged in efforts to rescue an estimated 5,000 Indians who are reportedly being held against their will in Cambodia and forced to carry out cyber frauds on people in India.

According to a report in The Indian Express, the scamsters could have duped people of at least ₹500 crore in India during the past six months. The government so far has successfully rescued three young Indians and brought them to the country, the report said.

Rescue plans

Earlier in March, the home ministry met officials of the external affairs ministry, the electronics and IT ministry, the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre and others to draw up a strategy to rescue the Indians.

Quoting an unnamed source, IE said that those trapped in Cambodia were forced to scam people in India and also extort money by pretending to be law enforcement officials who had uncovered something illegal.

Odisha Police busted racket

The racket came to light after the Odisha Police busted a cybercrime syndicate in December last year and arrested eight people who were allegedly involved in taking people to Cambodia.

This followed a complaint by a senior central government officer who had been cheated of ₹70 lakh.

The police arrested eight persons from different parts of India and piled up prima facie evidence against others linked to the scam.

Lookout circulars were issued against 16 people. Two persons, Harish Kurapati and Naga Venkata Sowjanya Kurapati, were detained at Hyderabad while returning from Cambodia, an officer was quoted as saying.

IE said the Indians were lured to Cambodia after being promised data entry jobs and instead being forced to carry out cyber frauds.

Chinese bosses

Dr Arathi Krishna, deputy chairman of the Non-Resident Indian Forum of the Government of Karnataka (NRIFK), told the daily that round 200 more people from the region are still in Cambodia.

One of the rescued Indians, identified as Stephen, told the daily that the fraudsters in Cambodia were Chinese but there was a Malaysian who translated their instructions to the Indians in English.

Torture and more

Stephen said that when the Indian workers fail to meet their targets, they are deprived of food and rest.

Rourkela Sub Divisional Police Officer Upasana Padhi said the passports of the Indian workers were taken away in Cambodia and they were made to work for 12 hours daily.

“If anybody refuses to do the work that is asked of him, he is tortured by way of physical assaults, electric shocks, solitary confinement, etc,” she said.