India Targets Traffickers Exploiting Youths in SE Asia

News

Indian authorities announced Wednesday a crackdown on four suspects involved in a massive human trafficking and cyber fraud case across Laos and other Southeast Asian countries.

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Reported by

Nneoma Omeje
July 18, 2024

The suspects, identified as Manjoor Alam from Delhi, Sahil and Ashish from Bahadurgarh, and Pawan Yadav from Siwan, were part of a human trafficking syndicate that lured Indian youths to foreign countries with promises of lucrative jobs, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) said in a statement.

The NIA conducted extensive searches in 15 locations across six states and two union territories in out of the 28 states and eight union territories that comprise India, to further document cases of human trafficking and cyber fraud.

The NIA’s investigations revealed that the youths were forced to work in fake call centers in Laos and other parts of Southeast Asia, where they were coerced into carrying out investment scams, relationship scams, and cryptocurrency scams.

The agency has been working to dismantle the entire network, which involves operatives based in India, Laos, and other countries.

Criminal gangs in Southeast Asia torture and abuse thousands of people into online scam operations, which generate billions of dollars per year, according to a 2023 UN report.