SEOUL (Reuters) -A group of 64 South Koreans detained in Cambodia over alleged online scam operations returned home on Saturday with most expected to face investigation, South Korean authorities said.
Their return followed the alleged murder of a South Korean college student who was tortured in Cambodia in August in a case linked to an employment scam, according to South Korean media.
Some returnees wore caps and masks and were escorted by police after their arrival at Incheon Airport in Seoul, their hands appearing to be cuffed but covered with cloth.
South Korea this week issued a “code-black” travel ban for parts of Cambodia and dispatched a team of high-level officials to help nationals lured into working in scam compounds and secure the release of those held against their will.
More than 1,000 South Koreans are believed to be among about 200,000 people of various nationalities involved in the scam compounds in Cambodia, South Korea’s National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac said on Wednesday.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Friday ordered an urgent removal of online illegal job advertisements – not only for Cambodia but also for Southeast Asia as a whole – to stem the flow of nationals being lured in the first place.
Second Vice Foreign Minister Kim Jina told reporters at the airport that the repatriation “confirmed the Cambodian government’s continued crackdown” on scam operations and its close cooperation with Seoul on the matter.
“Our government will build and actively use an effective system to eradicate scams targeting South Koreans in Cambodia,” she said.
A senior police official said Cambodian authorities had agreed to notify Seoul of arrests of South Koreans and send them to South Korea to face justice under South Korean law.
The official added that authorities would focus on uncovering the structure, scale, and networks behind the scams, often involving voice-phishing operations.
The United Nations estimates the scam centres which have emerged in Southeast Asia since the COVID-19 pandemic, generate billions of dollars in revenue for criminal networks every year, targeting victims around the world through phone and online scams.
(Reporting by Do Gyun Kim, Sebin Choi; Additional reporting by Heekyong Yang;)
