258 people free from forced scamming

March 2025

Last month, armed militia released 260 people from 19 different countries working in industrial-scale, online scamming operations in Myanmar.

These scamming complexes are notorious for trafficking victims into horrific working conditions involving beatings and constant surveillance. Thai officials identified 258 of the people as survivors of human trafficking.

Once safely with Thai authorities across the border, IJM Thailand rapidly mobilised a team to assist victim identification and response efforts, in coordination with local non-profit organisations.

“The hope is that strengthened government victim identification in forced scamming cases will lead to better protection for migrant workers overall," said an IJM casework staff, who assisted during the victim identification process.

“This is the beginning of one of the largest releases of victims from the scam compounds in Myanmar, with hundreds or thousands expected to be freed in the coming weeks. We’re grateful for the Thai government and the non-profit organizations we partner with, who have been working tirelessly to support survivors,” said Andrew Wasuwongse, Country Director of IJM Thailand.

 “We also commend the Thai government's decisive action by focusing attention on the scam compounds, including cutting off the supply of Thai-side electricity and internet to the compounds in Myanmar,” he added.

The majority of the identified victims of trafficking were from countries across Asia and Africa, including the Philippines, Laos, Cambodia, China, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Taiwan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, and as far away as Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya and Brazil.

Since 2022, IJM staff have supported the government’s comprehensive victim identification process at the Thai border and in Bangkok. Many people who have been trafficked face significant uncertainty as they await formal recognition as trafficking victims.

Gavesh*, a survivor of forced scamming who was assisted by IJM and featured in the 2023 BBC documentary ‘Hunting the Catfish Crime Gang’, expressed relief to IJM upon hearing the news:

“I’m glad that more people are coming out of the compounds. I know they went through horrific experiences. I hope that even more victims will be freed and safely returned to their home countries.”

Over the past few years, thousands of people from more than 60 countries around the world have fallen victim to forced scamming. In most cases, traffickers deceived individuals into traveling to Thailand for seemingly legitimate jobs, only to be taken across the border into Myanmar and forced to work in exploitative working conditions.

IJM’s offices in Cambodia, Myanmar, Malaysia, the Philippines and Indonesia (through a local partner) are working with government agencies and embassies to facilitate the freedom, repatriation and care of survivors, as well as investigation by law enforcement partners into the cross-border human trafficking networks involved.

Since 2021, IJM has assisted close to 500 survivors of forced scamming in Southeast Asia. IJM also supports the government’s criminal justice system response, which has led to the convictions of 15 perpetrators involved in forced scamming to date, including one trafficker in Thailand who was sentenced to 30 years in prison.

Learn more about forced scamming >>

Photo courtesy of the Thai government’s Ministry of Social Development and Human Security (MSDHS).