TAK (Thailand): “I was electrocuted more than 10 times and tortured almost every week during my captivity in their so-called office.”
That was the horrifying and harrowing account of one of the Malaysians who was rescued from the ruthlessness of job scam syndicates in Myanmar.
The 45-year-old man from Johor, who only wanted to be known as Teo, said he was lured by a promising translation job opening in Thailand with a salary of RM7,000 in August 2023.
A Facebook advertisement about the translator position in Bangkok with a trading company had caught his attention.
It required a one-week stay in Thailand.
According to a Bernama report, Teo’s arrival at the Bangkok airport signalled the start of a six-hour journey, during which he was transferred between vehicles three times, before being taken to Mae Sot near a river.
There, he was forced to cross into Myanmar and trained to become a scammer.
Working 14 hours a day, Teo sorted approximately 10,000 phone numbers for the syndicate.
His only compensation was a living allowance of 5,000 baht RM660) for the first three months, with severe punishment awaiting anyone who attempted to escape or fell behind on their tasks.
Mohd Shahidan (not his real name), 29, from Kuala Lumpur, is another Malaysian rescued from the syndicate.
He was given the task of searching for phone numbers listed on social media.
Failure to meet the daily target of 70 individual chats was said to have led to electrocution and caning.
Another victim, a 19-year-old woman from Penang known as Ong, was deceived into becoming a scammer by a man claiming to be Taiwanese.
He enticed her with the promise of a high-paying job in Thailand.
Instead, she was taken to Myanmar without any travel documents.
“We would be punished with caning, forced to do push-ups or confined in a dark room for failing to meet the targets set by the scam company,” Ong said.
Teo, Shahidan and Ong are among 15 Malaysians rescued from job scam syndicates in Myawaddy, Myanmar.
They were among the 261 foreign victims who were transferred to Thailand for deportation last Wednesday.
The Malaysian Embassy is currently working with Thai authorities to facilitate the process of having in place the victims’ travel documentation to ensure their safe repatriation.
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