Mumbai: Was threatened, says man who escaped from cybercrime factory

One of the three men who unshackled themselves from the clutches of Chinese handlers running cybercrime factories in Laos has allegedly received threat messages from one of the three agents who had provided logistic support in the trafficking of the trio from Mumbai to Thailand.

Ismail Sayed, the victim, told mid-day that when he asked the agents for his pending dues, he was told he would face dire consequences. “I was not given the promised salary. After I came back, I started to demand my pending salary from an agent, who is also my childhood friend. I told him that if the salary was not paid, I would approach the police and file a legal complaint against him. But he quickly resorted to threatening me, typing, ‘Do you think it is useful? Remember, there are many people in India who are short of money! 

Believe that money can solve many problems. Your child has just been born! Before he started to talk, he has no father (sic). More importantly, I know where your home is. There are too many people in the slums of India who are desperate for their lives and who are short of money! Be careful when you go out! Lock the door at home’. This is the threat message I received on my WhatsApp from an international number of the agent,” Sayed told mid-day.

He added that he had submitted a written complaint at Naya Nagar police station in Mira Road against the agents who allegedly had provided them logistic support to fly from Mumbai to Thailand to finally smuggle them near the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone, where each worker was sold for Rs 5 lakh. “But the FIR is yet to be registered. I have mentioned everything in my two-page complaint letter,” he said.

In a bid to lure them into the racket, the childhood friends-turned-agents had promised them a lucrative salary of R70,000 per month for a job in a call centre in Laos. But the victims were shocked to learn about the nature of the work. “The cybercrime being carried out by Chinese handlers was on another level,” said Sayed Zakir Abbas, who is submitting a separate complaint at Naya Nagar police station.

“We were promised home-cooked food, but the conditions were so appalling that we lost all interest in eating. Over time, this took a serious toll on our health. We were not even paid our salary and now we are facing death threats from the agents. I don’t know what to do now,” said Sayed. Five men from Mira Road were trafficked to Laos by the three local agents from Naya Nagar. While three, Sayed Zakir Abbas, Shaban Salim and Ismail Sayed, have returned, two men — Lucky Ali and Farooq Shaikh — are still stuck at the cybercrime factories in Laos, according to Salim.

“Those who are stuck in Laos have informed us that two agents have flown to Laos, and the third agent is seen roaming scot free in Mira Road because the FIR is yet to be registered against them,” Salim told mid-day. An officer attached to Naya Nagar police station said, “We have received a written complaint from those who have returned from Laos. They have been called to the police station on Monday to explain the modus operandi of the racketeers before we register an FIR.”

Cases registered across India

The cybercrime racket operating out of Laos—allegedly run by Chinese syndicates—has been thriving for several years. These criminal networks, often described by survivors as ‘monstrous’, have exploited countless victims through a deadly combination of human trafficking, forced labour, and high-tech online fraud, which mid-day highlighted in reports published last week.

Many unemployed youths, lured by promises of lucrative overseas jobs, were instead subjected to forced labour in Laos. After managing to escape the international cybercrime syndicates operating there, victims filed complaints across India, prompting police to register multiple FIRs based on their harrowing experiences.

Considering the gravity of the offences and their international linkages, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in accordance with the National Investigation Agency Act, 2008, is looking into such cases.

2024 case

In March 2024, the Vile Parle police had registered an FIR under various Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Emigration Act sections against three agents — Jerry Philips Jacob, Godfrey Thomas Alvares and Sunny Gonsalves — based on the complaint of a victim, Siddhart Chandrashekar Yadav.

“They were accused of running an organised trafficking syndicate by luring and trafficking Indian youths to foreign countries and forcing them to work in fake call centres,” said a police officer. This case was handed over to the Mumbai Crime Branch who arrested Jacob and Alvares. Gonsalves, a resident of Vasai, remains at large. After the Central government learnt about the gravity of the matter, the case was handed over to the NIA.

In a bid to safeguard Indian job seekers from falling into the trap of international traffickers, the Embassy of India in Laos issued an advisory on May 7, 2024, where job seekers were advised to beware of fake or exploitative job offers in Laos. “Since the victims are not well educated, such messages are not read by them,” said a police officer in Mira Road.

Advisory issued by the Ministry of External Affairs

Instances have come to our notice recently wherein Indian nationals are being lured for employment through Thailand in Lao People’s Democratic Republic (PDR) – also known as Laos. These fake jobs are for posts such as of ‘Digital Sales and Marketing Executives’ or ‘Customer Support Service’ by dubious companies involved in call-centre scams and crypto-currency fraud in the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Laos.

Agents in places such as Dubai, Bangkok, Singapore and India associated with these firms are recruiting Indian nationals by taking a simple interview and the typing test, and are offering high salaries, hotel bookings, along with return air tickets and visa facilitation. Victims are illegally taken across the border into Laos from Thailand and held captive to work in Golden Triangle SEZ in Laos under harsh and restrictive conditions. At times, they are taken hostage by criminal syndicates indulging in illegal activities and forced to work in strenuous conditions under constant physical and mental torture.

In some other cases, Indian workers have been brought to Laos to work in other regions of Laos in low-cost jobs such as mining, wood factory, etc. In most cases, their handlers exploit them and endanger them in illegal work. A number of Indians have been rescued under very difficult conditions. Visa on Arrival in Thailand or Laos does not permit employment and the Lao authorities do not issue work permits to Indian nationals coming to Laos on such visas. It may be noted that tourist visa is to be used only for the purpose of tourism.

Please note that those convicted of human trafficking crimes have been sentenced up to 18 years in prison in Laos. Therefore, Indian nationals are advised not to get enticed and entrapped in such fraudulent or exploitative job offers and are requested to exercise extreme caution and verify the antecedents of recruiting agents as well as any company before taking up any job offer in Laos. For any help or clarification on job offers in Lao PDR, please contact the Indian Embassy at Emergency Contact Number +856-2055536568 or email: cons.vientianne@mea.gov.in.”

This article first appeared on Mid Day