KOCHI: Despite the ongoing probe into job scams and human trafficking for employment overseas, several youths, who were trafficked under the guise of data entry jobs in Cambodia and have since returned home to Kerala, continue to remain traumatised by the horrific experience.
Vishnu,24, from Kannur, one of the six victims of the job scam in Cambodia who was brought back to India with the assistance of the Indian embassy on August 9, recounted those days, “We were forced to conceal our identities, work as cyber slaves and lure others using fake IDs. We had no option to disclose this to our loved ones.” The 24-year-old also described the harsh living conditions in the Southeast Asian country, including barely six hours of sleep, 16 hours of regular duty followed by extra work with impossible targets, a strict work environment and no freedom to communicate openly with family or friends,” said Vishnu.
“We were recruited by a company which employed around 70 Indian nationals. But it was run by Chinese citizens. After a typing test that included a word count, they made us sign an agreement, in which we were assigned female identities,” said Vishnu, adding, “we were forced to log in using fake profiles with female names like Bhavana and eye-catching photos”.
“Our job entailed chatting up high-profile clients as women and building close relationships with them in every sense. Once a connection was established, higher officials would take over the communication and we had to simply forget about the contact,” he said.
Vishnu added, “I came across this job offer on Facebook. A Kollam-based agency, run by a man called John and his colleague Reji, handled the rest of the hiring process.”
Vishnu revealed that he transferred Rs 85,000 to the duo’s bank account before departure and handed over $500 (approximately Rs 42,000), which was meant to be shown as ‘show money,’ to the driver who picked them up at the Cambodian airport. “John was not present at the scene, citing some urgent matters and we never heard from him again,” he added.
Another victim of the Cambodian job scam, a young man from Kasaragod, spoke about the terrible working conditions. “The workstation was located inside a large industrial compound with tight security and access was heavily restricted. We could not casually talk to other employees or be allowed to openly contact our family members. The team leader monitored us 24/7 and threatened us. Despite these challenges, we tried to reach out to the Indian embassy officials,” he added.
Commenting on the Cambodia job scam, a senior officer at the Nedumbassery police station said, “In recent days, six cases related to this job scam have been registered at our station. The complainants include three individuals from Kannur, and one each from Kasaragod, Kollam and Thiruvananthapuram. Due to jurisdiction issues, the complaints were forwarded to the respective police stations of the complainants for registering FIRs. We are hopeful of a thorough investigation into the complaints, given their serious nature,” he added.