Four youths from Jagtial, Telangana, were reported duped into going to Laos on the pretext of promising jobs, only to be sold to Chinese syndicates and forced into cyber crimes.
The young men, Chilumula Praveen Kumar (33), Chetlapelli Mahesh (29), Gandla Anil Kumar (27), and Ayyori Mohan (21), shared their harrowing experience after returning home and filing a complaint with the Jagtial district superintendent of police.
“The agent promised me a data entry job, but it turned out to be a cyber crime operation.” Upon arrival in Laos, the group was sold to criminal networks and tasked with creating fake Facebook profiles to target Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) for fraudulent investments. Gandla Anil Kumar stated, “We were forced to chat with NRIs and convince them to invest. The hacking team would then take over their accounts,” recounted Anil Kumar, one of the victims of the alleged scam.
The youths reached Laos on September 30 and managed to return to India on October 7 with assistance from an acquaintance from Andhra Pradesh.
“The agent told me the job was related to bitcoin sales. When I arrived, I was initially rejected but later forced to work 18 hours a day under threat of violence," said Ayyori Mohan who is differently-abled.
Local agent Gajarla Vamsi reportedly charged each youth ₹2 lakh for their trip, which included transit through Bangkok.
Once in Laos, the youth faced harsh conditions, being coerced into cyber fraud operations against NRIs and individuals of Indian origin based in the U.S.
The group was instructed to create fake online profiles, often posing as women, to lure victims into revealing sensitive financial information.
Chilumula Praveen Kumar recalled Vamsi assuring them of a ₹70,000 salary after training.
“I paid ₹1.5 lakh to the agent and another ₹50,000 later. Upon arrival, we were forced to sign agreements and use fake IDs,” Kumar said.
The youths endured physical and psychological abuse during their ordeal.
One victim managed to record a police raid on their facility by discreetly hiding a phone in his shirt pocket. After arriving in Bangkok, they were contacted by Rajasekhar, an accomplice of Vamsi, who was supposed to help them travel to Laos. Instead, they found themselves trapped in a dangerous situation.
(With inputs from TOI)
The young men, Chilumula Praveen Kumar (33), Chetlapelli Mahesh (29), Gandla Anil Kumar (27), and Ayyori Mohan (21), shared their harrowing experience after returning home and filing a complaint with the Jagtial district superintendent of police.
“The agent promised me a data entry job, but it turned out to be a cyber crime operation.” Upon arrival in Laos, the group was sold to criminal networks and tasked with creating fake Facebook profiles to target Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) for fraudulent investments. Gandla Anil Kumar stated, “We were forced to chat with NRIs and convince them to invest. The hacking team would then take over their accounts,” recounted Anil Kumar, one of the victims of the alleged scam.
The youths reached Laos on September 30 and managed to return to India on October 7 with assistance from an acquaintance from Andhra Pradesh.
“The agent told me the job was related to bitcoin sales. When I arrived, I was initially rejected but later forced to work 18 hours a day under threat of violence," said Ayyori Mohan who is differently-abled.
Local agent Gajarla Vamsi reportedly charged each youth ₹2 lakh for their trip, which included transit through Bangkok.
Once in Laos, the youth faced harsh conditions, being coerced into cyber fraud operations against NRIs and individuals of Indian origin based in the U.S.
The group was instructed to create fake online profiles, often posing as women, to lure victims into revealing sensitive financial information.
Chilumula Praveen Kumar recalled Vamsi assuring them of a ₹70,000 salary after training.
“I paid ₹1.5 lakh to the agent and another ₹50,000 later. Upon arrival, we were forced to sign agreements and use fake IDs,” Kumar said.
The youths endured physical and psychological abuse during their ordeal.
One victim managed to record a police raid on their facility by discreetly hiding a phone in his shirt pocket. After arriving in Bangkok, they were contacted by Rajasekhar, an accomplice of Vamsi, who was supposed to help them travel to Laos. Instead, they found themselves trapped in a dangerous situation.
(With inputs from TOI)
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