Bangladeshi Trafficking Victims Describe Forced Labor in Cambodian Scam Centers

Author: Amy Asubonteng

July 27, 2026

Not only does HRRC condemn all involved in the trafficking of Bangladeshi job seekers, but we also call for better education and awareness surrounding fraudulent labour migration schemes disguised to exploit others. In addition, HRRC supports the Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment’s plan to limit the recruitment of their citizens in this infamous scam compound.

Computers and workstations seized by police during an online scam crackdown at a hotel in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, March 11, 2026. [Image credit: Roun Ry/Reuters]

More than 500 Bangladeshis were rescued from Cambodia’s cyber scam human trafficking scheme. This human trafficking scheme is infamously known for recruiting Bangladeshi via false job offers and selling them in Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, and other Southeast Asian countries. The Bangladeshi trafficking survivors were sent abroad through brokers and agencies; issued visas that did not match the jobs they were offered; had their documents seized; were trapped in guarded scam center compounds; and were forced to scam impressionable elders.

One Bangladeshi interviewee, Tofail Ahmed, recalls a friend of his suggesting a computer operator job in Cambodia back in 2005. Ahmed and the friend met up with the broker, who scanned his documents. A few weeks later, the broker demanded payment for the job, which went directly to both the broker and Pulshpita Overseas, a manpower agency in Bangladesh involved in the trafficking scheme. Weeks later, the broker gave Ahmed the Cambodian visa. However, on the visa, Ahmed was listed as a construction worker instead of a computer operator. The broker dismissed the misclassification.

When Ahmed made it to the capital of Cambodia, Phnom Penh, another Bangladeshi man came to pick him up and drive him to what he thought would be his interview. Instead, the two-hour-long drive led Ahmed to a remote and heavily guarded compound. Ahmed’s documents and money were seized, and it was not until the fourth day there that he found out the job they would have him do. Trapped in the compound, he was forced to pretend to be a woman online and scam people for about Tk 58100 for one month’s work ($476 USD). However, Ahmed was not paid the following month.

Ahmed recalls him and other detainees being tortured in a solitary room where they were beaten with hockey sticks and electrocuted whenever they failed to meet targets, refused to work, or repeatedly asked to leave. It was not until Tofail Ahmed convinced his family to send money that he could pay the managers to let him go. 

A similar situation was found with another detainee, Talat Mahmud. Mahmud, too, was convinced he would be working a legitimate job; his documents were seized, and operators demanded money for his release. Like Ahmed, he was delivered to the compound in a similar manner. Mahmud was then dropped off at a Chinese company in Cambodia. He was electrocuted when he refused to work, and was fed dry noodles sometimes once a day.

More interviews with returnees showed an almost identical route, suggesting a pattern in the recruiting system. 

Awareness is especially important in preventing more Bangladeshis from falling victim to these traps. According to the UN, recruitment into cyber scam compounds tends to mirror legitimate labour migration, which makes it difficult for jobseekers to distinguish trafficking schemes. Along with awareness, the State Minister for Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment, Nurul Haque Noor, said the ministry is “... reviewing its work visa attestation policy for countries such as Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos” and cracking down on anybody involved in visa fraud.

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Glossary

• Attestation: an official verification of something as true or authentic 

• Broker: someone who acts as an intermediary: such as an agent who negotiates contracts of purchase and sale (as of real estate, commodities, or securities)

• Compound: a fenced or walled-in area containing a group of buildings and especially residences 

• Documents: an original or official paper relied on as the basis, proof, or support of something 

• Human trafficking: the crime of transporting or controlling people and forcing them to work in the sex trade or other forms of forced labour 

• Impressionable: easy to influence 

• Operators: a shrewd and skillful person who knows how to circumvent restrictions or difficulties 

• Policy: a high-level overall plan embracing the general goals and acceptable procedures especially of a governmental body 

• Recruit: to fill up the number of with new members 

• Remote: far removed in space, time, or relation : divergent 

• Scam: a fraudulent or deceptive act or operation 

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References

1. How Bangladeshi jobseekers are trafficked into Cambodia’s scam compounds 

2. Bangladesh Cambodia Job Scam | How Bangladeshi jobseekers are trafficked into Cambodia's scam compounds | Bangladeshis Trafficked to Cambodia | The Daily Star 

3. Minimum Wage in Bangladesh for 2026 

4. How Bangladeshi jobseekers are trafficked into Cambodia's cybercrime compounds 

5. report-a-wicked-problem.pdf