Hyderabad: The Indian mission in Myanmar has started efforts to rescue 140 Indians, including many from Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, trapped in a cybercrime den near Myanmar-Thailand border. These individuals, lured by fake job offers, have been forcibly held and made to work for Chinese gangs running online fraud operations.
The embassy in Yangon confirmed that the case was taken up following an urgent appeal from the families of those trapped. Embassy counsellor (consular) RC Yadav responded to an email from Union minister of state for home Bandi Sanjay, acknowledging the distress call from Madhukar Reddy Kokkirala, a victim from Karimnagar.
Indian authorities reported that a large-scale crackdown on scam centres in Myawaddy, Myanmar, is underway, driven by international pressure. As part of this effort, multiple victims are expected to be repatriated via Mae Sot, Thailand, in the coming days.
The embassy assured that they are closely monitoring the developments and have provided an emergency helpline (+9595419602) for those in need of immediate assistance.
Many of the victims, including Madhukar Reddy, managed to send their live locations, videos, and voice messages to their families before their Wi-Fi and mobile access were cut off.
Madhukar, an MBA graduate from Rangapeta village in Karimnagar, was among those deceived by job recruiters promising high-paying data entry jobs in Bangkok. Instead, he was trafficked to Myanmar, where he was forced to execute online scams.
