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Over 7,000 workers from scam centers in Myanmar are awaiting repatriation after a regional crackdown

By JINTAMAS SAKSORNCHAI and HUIZHONG WU - Feb 26, 2025, 11:23 PM ET
Last Updated - Feb 27, 2025, 12:03 AM EST
Thailand Myanmar Scam Centers
People from China, Vietnam, Ethiopia believed to have been trafficked and trapped into working in online scam centers after they were rescued in Myawaddy district in eastern Myanmar, Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanaphon Wuttison)

A new crackdown on online scam centers has led to over 7,000 people from around the world being held in a Myanmar border town awaiting repatriation

MAE SOT, Thailand (AP) — A new crackdown on online scam centers has led to over 7,000 people from around the world being held in a Myanmar border town awaiting repatriation, and those helping them say the unprecedented number is straining the resources of Thailand just across the border and leading to delays. 

The crackdown coordinated among Thailand, Myanmar and China follows Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra's visit to Beijing this month, where she told Chinese leader Xi Jinping that Thailand would act against the scam networks that have drawn in hundreds of thousands of people. 

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They are often lured under false pretenses to work in scam centers in Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos, where they financially exploit people around the world through false romances, bogus investment pitches and illegal gambling schemes. 

Many find themselves trapped in virtual slavery. 

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