Twenty seven youngsters from Andhra Pradesh’s Visakhapatnam and surrounding areas who were trafficked to Cambodia returned on Friday, May 24. A total of 58 youngsters were recently trafficked to Cambodia on the promise of employment, of which 27 hail from Andhra Pradesh.
Addressing the media, Visakhapatnam Joint Commissioner of Police Fakkeerappa Kaginelli on Friday said a batch of 25 youngsters arrived in Visakhapatnam. Two others made their own arrangements and returned home.
The police learnt of a human trafficking network in the state following this incident.
According to the police, fraudsters in Andhra Pradesh would lure unemployed youth promising them jobs. However, they were trafficked to be sold to Chinese operators in Cambodia where they were tortured and confined to work in dark rooms to carry out cyber crime and ponzi schemes.
The Joint Commissioner said that the trafficked youth 'revolted' against their handlers leading to the arrest of over 300 Indians by local authorities in Cambodia. The youngsters protested in Jinbei and Compound, a purported hotspot for cybercrime in Sihanoukvile, Cambodia. The protest prompted the Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and other important Indian government agencies to secure their release.
Subsequently, the police arrested three persons for luring over 150 youth from Visakhapatnam and its vicinity, on the assurance that they would get employment.