A racket of “cyber slavery,” where young unemployed men and women from Bengal are allegedly transported abroad with the promise of jobs and then forced to commit cyber crimes as part of an organised international operation, has been unearthed.
At least 40 men and two women from Bengal, lured with lucrative jobs in Thailand and Myanmar, were allegedly forced into “cyber slavery” and have recently been repatriated to India.
The Cyber Crime Wing of Bengal Police identified a network operating in the country that allegedly duped these individuals and sent them abroad, where they were coerced into committing cyber fraud. Many of the recruitments were done through social media platforms, police said.
Job promise
Victims were promised positions such as receptionists or data entry operators. However, upon reaching foreign countries, they were allegedly compelled to carry out financial scams.
The police have identified four suspects by name and registered formal cases against them: Ranveer Sharma of Milanpally, Siliguri; Lakpa Sherpa of Kurseong, Darjeeling; Lagel Sherpa of Assampara, Siliguri; and Neil of Gujarat.
Charges against the accused include human trafficking, unlawful compulsory labour, habitual dealing in slaves, and organised crime.
Victim or accused?
“As of now, the men and women repatriated from foreign countries are being treated as victims of human trafficking. Each will be examined to verify if they were involved in any cybercrime. If it is found that someone wilfully committed cyber fraud and benefited from it, they would be treated as an accused in this case,” said a senior officer of the Cyber Crime Wing.
The police have coined the term cyber slavery, which they define as “forcing someone to commit cyber fraud to cause unlawful financial loss to another person.”
“For example, if a person in India receives a fraudulent call and is cheated through digital means, the caller could also be a bonded slave forced to carry out instructions. Cyber slavery is as grave as flesh trading, where mostly women are lured with promises of jobs or settled lives and later forced into prostitution,” explained a senior officer of Bengal Police.
Cybercrime hub
In this case, the police discovered that men and women transported to Myanmar and Thailand under the pretext of employment were sent to KK Park, located at the border of the two countries. This location is a hub for cyber crimes, the police said.
“According to statements from victims we have questioned so far, once at KK Park, the men and women were made to work in scam centres mainly headed by Chinese nationals and others. Their primary targets were innocent people in India and the US,” said an officer.
Scale of operation
The 42 people from Bengal are part of a larger group of 750-800 Indians repatriated from Myanmar recently.
The racket reportedly used various IT tools and apps to hack mobile phones and computers, taking control of their targets’ devices to commit financial fraud. The police said the total amount of cyber fraud and money laundering carried out through this operation ran into crores, from which the heads of the racket profited.
A senior officer said that a case has been registered and investigations are underway. As of Thursday evening, no arrests had been made.