A 19-year-old from Hyderabad escaped from cyber slavery in Laos, disclosed systematic fraud targeting Non-Resident Indians in the United States. The Telangana Cyber Security Bureau (TGCSB) is now investigating the matter, which appears to be a case of sextortion and cryptocurrency scam operated by Chinese nationals under the guise of call centre jobs, the New Indian Express reported.
According to the victim, it all began when a travel agent from Kashmir, Ashique Baba, contacted him through Facebook and offered a high-paying data entry job. On the Promise of a monthly pay of Rs 1.20 Lakh, the 19-year-old got ready to take the job and travelled to Bangkok in December 2023.
The teen was taken to Laos by a man named Bell, reportedly from Ethiopia. There, he met a Chinese man, Titu, a manager of the call centre and was asked to sign a contract and submit his passport and mobile phone.
The victim told the police that he did as he was asked. “As per their demand, I signed the contract on December 27, 2024. They trained me for 15 days in cyber frauds. When I asked to return to India, they demanded $3,000 to release my passport,” the victim told TGCSB.
He revealed that he was trained to download images of attractive women from social media platforms and use them to make fake Facebook profiles and send friend requests to men in the United States, especially non-resident Indias.
“Once a connection was made, the victim along with other members in the team would pose as women and engage the men in sexually suggestive chats. If the targets showed interest, the profiles were then handed over to senior members of the racket, who would gradually lure the victims into fake cryptocurrency investments,” the police said.
Elaborating on how the fraud took place in the face of investment opportunities, the Bureau said that the fraudulent websites displayed fake earnings and profits to build credibility. Initially, they allowed small withdrawals to gain trust. However, once victims invested larger sums, their accounts were frozen, and further cryptocurrency payments were demanded under the pretext of government taxes.
The victim also revealed that despite a contract promising a salary of 20,000 yuan, he was never paid. After months of cyber exploitation, he managed to escape the facility with the help of local residents and sought refuge at the Indian Embassy. Officials sent the man back home after arranging an emergency passport.
