Mumbai Woman Arrested For Sending Indians To Cambodia As 'Cyber Slaves'

A 30-year-old woman from Mumbai has been arrested by Telangana's Cyber Security Bureau for allegedly trafficking youth from India to Cambodia to be kept as cyber slaves there. The woman, who worked with the director of a Chinese-owned company, was paid Rs 30,000 for every person that she managed to trick and send to the country. 

'Cyber slave' is a term used for youth who are taken to a country by deceit, after being promised a legal employment opportunity, and are forced to participate in cyber frauds, sometimes under a threat of violence and confinement. Their passports are taken away, shutting off any way of returning home, and they are told there is a contractual obligation to stay. Sometimes, they are also 'sold' to other agents, often Chinese, for a price.

In July, the Indian embassy in Phnom Penh had said it had rescued 14 Indians who had been pushed into cyber crime in Cambodia. The embassy had said that, in collaboration with Cambodian authorities, it had facilitated the rescue and repatriation of over 650 Indians who had fallen victim to such scams so far. 

The Telangana Cyber Security Bureau in Hyderabad identified the arrested woman as Priyanka Shivkumar Siddu, a resident of Chembur in Mumbai, and said a case has been registered against her. 

Branching Out

Officials said Priyanka had previously worked at a licensed overseas job processing agency named Maxwell, which shut down because its managing editor faced health issues. After gaining experience there, she started her own agency without a proper license. Since she lacked legal authorisation, she misled job seekers by offering visit visas, promising that they would be converted to job visas later. 

As her agency expanded, she developed a connection with one Narayana, who also operated a similar agency in Mumbai. Narayana travelled to Cambodia and informed Priyanka about data entry job opportunities there, introducing her to Jithender Shah alias Amer Khan, the director of a Chinese-owned company named Zhan Zei.

Relative As Guinea Pig?

The officials said Priyanka also visited Cambodia to confirm the details and was offered $500 (approximately Rs 42,000) by agents as a commission for each candidate she sent to the country. Upon returning to India, she processed visas for her sister's son, Akshay Vaidhya, and his friend Danish Khan, who were the first two candidates she sent to Cambodia. 

Once in Cambodia, the two travelled by road for 12 hours after which Jithender Shah alias Amer Khan explained their job, which involved cybercrimes. Priyanka advertised extensively through newspapers and social media, offering high-paying jobs in Cambodia, leading individuals like Vamsi Krishna and Sai Prasad from Hyderabad to contact her. She collected Rs 30,000 as commission for each candidate, processed their visas, and sent them to Cambodia, where they experienced severe physical and mental torture after refusing to participate in cybercrime activities. 

Krishna and Prasad returned to India with great difficulty and the investigation into Priyanka's involvement in sending others abroad for cybercrimes is ongoing.

Officials said that not only are the victims of such scams coerced into committing cybercrimes and face abuse and psychological torture if they refuse, money is also extorted from some after a few months by threatening to kill them. The payment is demanded in cryptocurrency. 

The Telangana Cyber Security Bureau said those looking for jobs abroad should always demand a proper job visa, rather than a visit visa, and verify the credentials of travel agents through the Protector of Emigrants and the e-Migrant portal. Agents demanding large sums of money for processing fees, registration, or visa charges should be a red flag.