Vijayawada: Two youths from Andhra Pradesh, who were lured with fake job offers in Singapore through a social media advertisement, have allegedly been trafficked to Cambodia and later shifted to Myanmar, where they were forced to commit cyber crimes and subjected to severe torture.
The victims, identified as Sai Baba, a native of Guntur district, and Poorna Venkata Krishna, a native of Krishna district, applied for overseas jobs after seeing the advertisement on social media. On April 2, they left Vijayawada after being informed that they had got job in Singapore.
However, the recruitment agents allegedly took them to Cambodia instead of Singapore. After spending nearly two months there, they have realised that they were being forced to engage in cyber fraud operations. From Cambodia, they were later shifted to Myanmar.
One of the victims managed to contact a friend over the phone, who arranged a conference call with representatives of the Andhra Pradesh Non-Resident Telugu Society (APNRT). During the call, the victims described the torture the cyber crime gang allegedly subjected them to.
They said the gang took their passports and other documents, locked them inside rooms, and assaulted them whenever they refused to participate in cyber crimes. They alleged that they were given electric shocks, confined in dark rooms, denied food, and that some victims were also subjected to sexual assault.
According to the victims, although a few people managed to escape, the gang took 18 persons, including Poorna Venkata Krishna. They further alleged that the gang is demanding Rs. 15 lakh from each victim for their release.
The victims’ friends lodged an online complaint with the Ministry of External Affairs on July 17 and later submitted another complaint to APNRT on July 22. APNRT representatives assured them that efforts would be made to bring the trapped youths back to India safely.
On Saturday night, Sai Baba’s sister and father, along with Poorna Venkata Krishna’s brother, met CI Veerendra at Thadepalli Police Station and submitted the details of the incident, seeking immediate intervention to rescue the victims.
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