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Southeast Asia’s scam gangs go global as crackdown bites

A new United Nations report warns of a global surge in Asian-led scam centres, operating as far afield as Nigeria, Angola and Brazil

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People of various nationalities who were tricked or trafficked into scam centres in Myanmar stand on a vessel as it passes to Thailand’s side of the border in February. Photo: Reuters
Associated Press
Transnational organised crime groups in Asia are spreading their lucrative scam operations across the globe in response to increased crackdowns by authorities, according to a United Nations report.
For several years, scam compounds have proliferated in Southeast Asia, especially in border areas of Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar, as well as in the Philippines, shifting operations from site to site to stay a step ahead of the police.

More recently, scam centres that have bilked victims out of billions of dollars through false romantic ploys, bogus investment pitches and illegal gambling schemes are now being reported operating as far afield as Africa and Latin America.

Asian crime syndicates have been expanding operations deeper into remote areas with lax law enforcement that are vulnerable to the influx, according to the report issued on Monday by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime or UNODC. The report is titled “Inflection Point: Global Implications of Scam Centres, Underground Banking and Illicit Online Marketplaces in Southeast Asia.”

“This reflects both a natural expansion as the industry grows and seeks new ways and places to do business, but also a hedging against future risks should disruption continue and intensify in Southeast Asia,” Benedikt Hofmann, UNODC’s acting regional representative for Southeast Asia and the Pacific, said in a statement.

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The Chinese criminal gangs behind Southeast Asia’s scam centres

The Chinese criminal gangs behind Southeast Asia’s scam centres

UNODC estimates that hundreds of industrial-scale scam centres generate just under US$40 billion in annual profits.

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