Disclaimer: In Real Life is a platform for everyday people to share their experiences and voices. All articles are personal stories and do not necessarily echo In Real Life’s sentiments.
This story was based on a phone call interview with a victim of a human trafficking ring and has been written from their first-person perspective. Some names, details and locations have been changed to protect the victim’s privacy.
If someone had told me that accepting a well-paying job in Thailand would lead me to being sold as a slave to a cybercrime syndicate, I wouldn’t have believed them.
Last year, my best friend approached me with a new job opportunity. At the time, I had lost my job due to Covid and I needed to find a source of income to support my wife and two kids.
I was offered a RM10,000 job in Thailand
The job was in Thailand with a RM10,000 salary and good benefits such as medical, dental, insurance. That should have been my first clue that it wasn’t a real job.
However, everything was verbal. No contract was presented to me, and I hadn’t been asked to sign anything. That should have been my second clue.
Secondly, I was told that in order to secure the job, I had to meet the “big bosses” in Thailand first. That should have been my third clue.
But at that time, I was thinking about my family and how this job was the answer to all our prayers. I was blind and trusting of my friend who I’d known for 14 years, and I never expected him to betray me like this.
Looking back, I bitterly regret trusting him because what he actually put me through was the worst thing I ever experienced in my life.
I was taken to a mansion in the middle of the jungle
When I touched down at the Thai airport, I was given instructions to board a bus, along with a few other men who looked to be from other nationalities. The bus drove us to a remote area, away from any town, village, or people.
Halfway through, we made a stop in a secluded jungle area, where armed guards boarded the bus. They put bags over our heads, which they said was just a “precautionary measure.”
By this time, I had already realised I had made a terrible mistake. I thought I was about to be murdered and my body parts sold on the black market.
When we arrived at our destination, they took off the bags and I looked out the window. I saw a huge gated and thick-fenced area surrounded by heavily-armed guards. It was a mansion with a basketball court, gym, a pool and other facilities.
We were escorted inside by the armed guards and stripped of all our devices and IDs: phones, wallets, even our passports. Then we were brought to the Big Boss’s office.
The boss got right down to business: We had to run over-the-phone scams for the syndicate. If we met the quota, we would get our phones and passports back. If we didn’t, we would be beaten and starved.
I was beaten for not meeting the quota
They gave me instructions on how to pretend to be a police officer, a bank teller, or a debt-collection agent. They gave me a script to say over the phone. It was a multiple-step scam involving 3 or 4 people to trick people into thinking they had lost a lot of money, and that we were helping them get it back.
In the beginning, I had no experience with scamming people and was slow to learn the ropes. Sometimes, they would beat me for messing up, like I misspoke, or I would forget to say something. If I missed my daily quota, they would stop giving me food.
We were given just 10 minutes each day on our phones to talk to our family members to reassure them that we were safe.
I began to lose track of the days. I was starved, beaten and treated like less than a human. I knew if this kept going on, I would surely die. I had to change my luck. So I waited for an opportunity.
Being from the ‘older generation’, I had a slight advantage. Having only gotten a cell phone in my mid-twenties, meant I had most of my family’s and friends’ numbers memorized. It was a long shot, but one of them could get me out of this mess. I had to call him.
My cousin’s close friend was in a gang and had ties to criminal syndicates. There was a chance his boss knew mine and someone he could get me out. Whenever we had our phone call, we were closely monitored. So I had to be tactful in how I spoke over the phone.
I remember the feeling of relief when he answered my call and I gave him every bit of information I had; about my surroundings, a description of my boss’s appearance, anything I could remember.
I was bought over by another crime syndicate in Myanmar
One day, my boss suddenly told me I was to be sold to another syndicate in Myanmar. It seems there were other gangs who ran similar operations there. A deal had been struck, and as part of it, my boss would let me go…for 90,000 Baht (RM12,000). I was bought over, like an item.
Since I was bought, I had to compensate for the amount for which I was purchased by the new boss in Myanmar. It was the same job scope, I had to scam people for their money. This time, it was an online scam where you didn’t have to pretend to be someone on the phone.
Thankfully here, I was not beaten nor tortured in any way. I was given human treatment, a roof over my head, food on the table and great recreational facilities. The work was less difficult than the previous work. I stopped thinking about finding an opportunity. All I could think about was meeting the quota so I could return home to my family.
In the end, it took me three long months to fulfil my debt. When I reached my target, they gave me my passport back and I was finally set free and sent back home. They told me if I told anyone about what I went through, they would come for my wife and children.
None of my friends or family know that I went through this
When I touched down in Malaysia, I cried. I never thought I would miss Malaysia so much. And after everything, I don’t think I ever want to leave.
I immediately went home and got to see my wife and children again. I had never been so happy to see them. My wife said I was skinnier and lost a lot of hair, but till now, she still doesn’t know the truth. I never reported what I went through to protect her and my kids.
But I had one last bone to pick. I paid a visit to my ‘best friend’. No surprise, but he wasn’t home. I told all my mutual friends to stay away from him. Most of them assumed he tried to cheat me of some money.
This experience carved scars on my life and changed me forever. I have always been someone who was a little too trusting and took things at face value. I will definitely not be making that mistake again.
It also taught me that there are more important things in life than money and reputation. As long as I have my family with me, we’ll always make it through together.
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Read also: I Was Abducted and Held at a Drug Rehab Facility. Here’s My Story
I Was Abducted and Held at a Drug Rehab Facility. Here’s My Story
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