It has been found that more than 5,000 Indian nationals are being kept against their will in Cambodia and are being coerced into taking part in internet scams that are directed towards Indian citizens. Over the past six months, these schemes have amassed an astounding Rs 500 crore. India and Cambodia are now collaborating to address this issue.
The Ministry of External Affairs reportedly corroborated the claims, as reported by Indian Express, and stated that the Indian Embassy in Cambodia is actively handling complaints from Indian nationals who were offered jobs but were ultimately coerced into unlawful cyber operations. After being saved, over 250 individuals were returned to India.
According to reports, those stranded in Cambodia may have been forced to pose as law enforcement officials in order to con Indians. They would get in touch with victims, make up a story about suspicious things being discovered in parcels they supplied, and then demand payment.
When a top government official said that they had lost more than Rs 67 lakh, the fraud was exposed. Eight persons connected to this cybercrime network were taken into custody by the Rourkela Police in Odisha.
One of the recovered victims, Stephen, described how he was coerced into traveling to Cambodia under the pretense of a work offer, but instead was made to fabricate social media identities in order to defraud people in India. They were subject to penalties for not meeting their tight daily goals. “I was given a data entry job in Cambodia by an agency in Mangaluru. We were three in number, one of us an Andhra Pradeshi named Babu Rao. I was skeptical when the immigration agent informed me we were leaving on a tourist visa,” he told Indian Express.
These victims, known as “cyber slaves,” suffered under severe circumstances, such as deprivation of food and sleep in the event that they failed to accomplish goals. Some were coerced into using dating apps to pretend to be women in order to commit fraud, such as frauds involving bitcoin trading.
“Among other things, they checked our typing speed.We didn’t learn till much later that our responsibility was to search Facebook accounts and flag potential victims. The instructions were translated into English by a Malaysian, but the crew was Chinese,” he said.
According to the Rourkela Police, the offenders employed harsh measures including physical attacks and seclusion to compel obedience. Many Indians unintentionally become ensnared in Cambodia. They are being identified and brought securely back to their homes.
BY,HHM