SEPANG: Three Malaysians who were deceived by a human trafficking syndicate in Laos were forced to become 'scammers' to deceive citizens of this country through 'love scam' tactics.
In addition to Malaysians, the three men, aged in their 20s and from Melaka, were also instructed to deceive victims through 'job scam' tactics involving citizens of Germany, France, England, and the United States (US).
They revealed this to reporters upon their arrival in the country after being rescued from the syndicate operating in the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone (GTSEZ) in Laos.
Earlier, they departed from Chiang Rai International Airport in Thailand, accompanied by a representative from the Malaysian International Humanitarian Organisation (MHO), Azirul Syafiq Sazali, and arrived at Terminal 2 of Kuala Lumpur International Airport at 6.30pm today.
Based on information, the three were deceived by a job syndicate advertised on Facebook, promising salaries between RM4,000 and RM9,000 per month as customer relations officers in Thailand, before being taken to Laos.
One of the victims, known only as Fikri, 20, said he was attracted by the job advertised on Facebook and left for Dubai in March, where he stayed for a month without doing any work.
After a month without work, he asked the syndicate representative to send him back to Malaysia but was instructed to pay a ransom of RM10,000 to RM20,000.
"After that, I was taken to Laos to become a scammer... sometimes the salary received was not enough after many deductions to pay fines for not meeting targets.
"We also had to consume non-halal food for survival," he said.
MHO secretary-general, Datuk Hishamuddin Hashim, said the syndicate demanded a ransom of RM80,000 from the victims, but MHO managed to bring them back without paying the ransom through negotiations with the syndicate representatives.
"In addition to these three victims, nine more Malaysians are expected to be brought back to the country next week," he said.