Sponsored statement by Ministry of Foreign Affairs Communications and Public Diplomacy Division

24 Malaysians who fell victim to job scams in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, were successfully brought back home. Most of the victims were allegedly deceived by high-paying job syndicates.

Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Abdullah said they were among the 148 Malaysians who had fallen victim to these syndicates.

“There were 27 victims who were supposed to be brought home. However, only 24 of them aged between 20 and 30 could return to Malaysia.

“The remaining three victims will need to go through legal process before being allowed to return to the country," he told reporters at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (klia2).

Saifuddin said another 29 Malaysians were still at the immigration depot in Cambodia because they did not have valid travel documents when they entered the country, and according to him, all of them are safe. He was able to visit seven Malaysians at the Phnom Penh immigration depot, while another 22 were reported to be in the Sihanoukville region.

“They will be repatriated in stages depending on the Cambodian immigration department because some do not have valid travel permits and the cases involve investigations by the Cambodian side”

Out of 148 reported cases, 118 Malaysians who fell victim to job offer scams in Cambodia have been rescued so far.

Saifuddin highlighted that the majority of victims had fallen victim to the modus operandi that offered them jobs with lucrative salaries through social networking sites such as Facebook, Telegram and WeChat.

He further advises all fellow Malaysians to be wary of lucrative job offers abroad.

“If you receive any offers, contact our embassy in Phnom Penh, so they can help check and verify whether the company is legitimate or not. Do not travel without the proper information.”

He added that the success of bringing home the 24 Malaysians resulted from continuous cooperation between the police and the Cambodian authorities.

“I want to thank the Malaysian government, the Cambodian government, and the Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, who gave specific instructions to conduct an operation to save the Malaysians there,“ he said.

“The ministry will continue to work closely with the police and Cambodian authorities to address this issue and prevent more Malaysians from becoming victims of such job syndicate”.

Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs Communications and Public Diplomacy Division