Cambodian police deny human trafficking accusations by fleeing Thais
Cambodian police clarified on Saturday that nine Thais who were recently rescued near the Thai-Cambodia border had quarrelled with each other and they were not fleeing from human traffickers as claimed earlier.
Police in Cambodia’s Banteay Meanchey province issued a statement on Saturday in response to allegations from Thai media that all the rescued nine Thai nationals were forced to work illegally as call centre scammers in Poipet.
The city is a Cambodian gambling destination sitting at the crossing point between the two countries.
Cambodian officials said that they had visited a building in Poipet, where all nine Thais claimed that they had been set on fire, and tried to escape from a call centre gang.
Citing their version, Thai media had reported that the nine Thais had entered Cambodia covertly after being offered jobs at a casino, but found out that they were actually working for a call centre gang at the building.
Following the raid, police reported finding 17 Thai people — 10 women and seven men. They were later taken to the city's police station for further investigation.
Cambodian police said the nine Thais got into a brawl before setting fire to a room within the building, and resorted to violence against the staff members who tried to calm things down.
Since they feared legal action, the nine Thai nationals decided to enter Thailand by passing through a barbed wire barrier near Ban Klong Luek border checkpoint in Thailand’s Sa Kaeo province on Monday, resulting in cuts to their bodies, police said.
They added that no evidence was found of Cambodian employers using violence against the escapees.
However, a civil society organisation named "People Network in Sa Kaeo province” claimed to have received calls for help from around 30 victims who had fled from the casino where all the nine Thais worked, to escape from human trafficking.
One of the group's key members, Amarin Yiheng, said that the head of this trafficking ring was a Chinese national named "Ah Wang" and that he had murdered and used violence against Thai labourers in Cambodia, together with committing fraud.
According to what the fleeing nine Thais told Thai authorities, 200 Thai people were being held at the casino building, and while they worked in Cambodia, they were threatened and beaten, even killed, if they refused to make scam calls. They also claimed to have witnessed Thai victims being shot dead by the gang members.
