Hong Kong Police Force and Immigration Department officers distributed leaflets at the check-in counter of Hong Kong International Airport on the 18th to remind departing passengers to beware of employment scams and pay attention to travel safety. Picture source: Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government News Network
Many Hong Kong people were lured to Southeast Asia with high salaries. If they did not engage in fraud, they were blackmailed and beaten. Picture source: South +
Recently, it is suspected that Hong Kong citizens were lured to Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar and other Southeast Asian countries, where they were detained and forced to engage in illegal work. They had to pay a high ransom to escape, and some were even severely beaten.
The Organized Crime and Triad Investigation Bureau of the Hong Kong Police (commonly known as "O") stated on the 21st that it was investigating a case in which Hong Kong people were deceived into Southeast Asian countries. As of that morning, a total of 5 local suspects had been arrested, and the case may be filed in the future. sue them. In addition, the police have received help from 36 victims, 22 of whom are still estimated to be imprisoned in Southeast Asia.
Hong Kong Security Bureau Secretary Tang Bingqiang said on August 20 that he would try his best to rescue people outside Hong Kong. Chinese embassies and consulates in relevant countries are also maintaining close communication with the governments of the host countries and actively searching for and rescuing relevant personnel.
Lure with high salary
Forced to engage in telecommunications fraud
Mr. Kwong, who was rescued and returned to Hong Kong, recalled to the media his painful experience of being "sold piglets" and said: "It is simply a purgatory on earth! Thanks to the Hong Kong police, the Immigration Department and the Chinese Embassy in the local area who tried every means to rescue me, otherwise I would be gone.”
Earlier, Mr. Kwong saw a job advertisement on a social platform, and the employer claimed that the monthly salary was 200,000 Hong Kong dollars. Hire croupiers for your casino in Cambodia. Since the income was considerable and the other party promised to cover air tickets and hotel accommodation expenses, Mr. Kuang thought it was a "good job" and contacted his employer through social platforms.
But as soon as Mr. Kuang arrived in the area by plane, he was coerced by a group of burly men to hand over his passport. The other party also forced him to engage in telecommunications fraud and pretended to be a woman to deceive more " piggies " online. If Mr. Kuang does not submit, the other party will ask his family to pay a ransom of US$10,000, otherwise Mr. Kuang will be beaten severely.
Since fraud requires the use of telephones, Mr. Kwong called his family in Hong Kong for help when the fraud group was not paying attention. Mr. Kwong’s family immediately sought help from the Hong Kong police. The Hong Kong Police Force and the Hong Kong Immigration Department contacted Interpol, the Chinese Embassy in the local area and other departments respectively. With the joint mediation of all parties, Mr. Kwong, who had been detained for two months, finally returned to Hong Kong safely.
official rescue
11 victims have returned to Hong Kong
According to reports, the above-mentioned arrested persons include 3 men and 2 women, aged between 17 and 51 years old; among them, 23-year-old and 30-year-old local men are suspected to be the backbone of the criminal group and are responsible for liaison and Controlled two other arrested persons responsible for solicitation; another 28-year-old woman was responsible for posting posts on social media related to the employment scam. These five people have been detained for investigation, and the police said they did not rule out the possibility of more arrests.
As for the above-mentioned 36 victims who asked the Hong Kong police for help, 14 of them have been ensured safety and regained their freedom (including 11 who have returned to Hong Kong). The remaining 22 people are estimated to be still imprisoned in Cambodia and Myanmar. 13 of them have maintained contact with the police and have not suffered much violence; the other 9 people have temporarily lost contact. The police and the victims' families are actively seeking assistance from all parties. After
received help from citizens, the Security Bureau of the Hong Kong SAR Government attached great importance to this incident. It has set up a task force to follow up and issued a Yellow Outbound Travel Alert to relevant Southeast Asian countries.
htmlOn August 20, Deng Bingqiang said that on the one hand, the Security Bureau is conducting relevant investigations in Hong Kong, and on the other hand, it will contact the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Commissioner's Office in Hong Kong, Interpol and relevant local departments to try its best to rescue the victims.The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government posted a message on the social page "Tamar Terrace" on the 19th, calling on the public not to believe online job advertisements or messages, especially jobs that claim to be able to "make quick money" without academic qualifications or work experience but with unusually high pay. The Hong Kong Immigration Department and the Hong Kong Police Force have also distributed leaflets at the airport to check-in counters in relevant Southeast Asian regions starting from the 18th, reminding departing passengers to be careful about job recruitment and pay attention to overseas travel safety.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said at a regular press conference on the 18th that Chinese embassies and consulates in relevant countries are maintaining close communication with the governments of the host countries and actively finding and rescuing relevant personnel. At the same time, Chinese citizens are reminded to be wary of false recruitment information on overseas networks, strictly abide by laws and regulations, ensure personal safety, and promptly report information related to fraud and gambling. In case of emergency, please report to the local police in time and contact the Chinese embassy or consulate in the local area.
Interview and writing: Nanfang Daily trainee reporter Wu Binbin
reporter Chen Yu Comprehensive Beijing Daily
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