The group was reportedly deceived by false promises of well-paid jobs advertised through social media and personal referrals.
Emma van der Walt, founder and head of Brave to Love SA, a non-profit organisation fighting human trafficking, says the victims were recruited under the guise of employment opportunities abroad. “We’ve seen an alarming increase in cases where South Africans are being targeted by criminal groups operating out of Asia,” she said in an interview.
According to van der Walt, these syndicates have been active since before the COVID-19 pandemic, setting up scamming operations in Myanmar with the cooperation of local militia groups. “This is a highly organised criminal operation. There are recruitment teams, HR departments, and even complaint channels, all designed to make it look legitimate,” she explained.
Victims, most between the ages of 18 and 35, are approached with offers of online marketing jobs targeting English-speaking markets in the United States and Britain. Many are recruited through Facebook or by friends and acquaintances already involved. Within days of accepting the offer, flights are booked and travel costs covered, luring them to Bangkok.
However, once in Thailand, they are smuggled across the border into Myanmar, often under armed guard. From there, victims are held in secure compounds and forced to participate in elaborate online scams, targeting unsuspecting people abroad through fake investment schemes, particularly in cryptocurrency.
Van der Walt says the problem is not unique to South Africans. “We’re seeing victims from all over, Zimbabwe, Kenya, other African countries, and even parts of Asia and Eastern Europe.”
The trafficking operation exploits SA’s high unemployment rates, particularly among young people desperate for work. “This vulnerability is being weaponised,” van der Walt warned, adding that some recruiters have even approached communities and churches to find new targets.
She urged young people to be cautious of job offers in Thailand and to seek verification through embassies or the SA human trafficking hotline before accepting overseas employment. “South Africans are easily targeted because we can travel on a tourist visa, which these traffickers exploit,” she said.
Efforts to rescue the victims are ongoing, with the Department of International Relations and Cooperation, Interpol, and the Hawks all involved in operations to identify and repatriate those trapped in the scam. So far, 23 victims have been brought back home, though many others remain in captivity.
The Department of Social Development is working on aftercare for returning victims, but van der Walt says more must be done to prevent young people from falling prey to these schemes in the first place. “We need better employment opportunities here in South Africa. If we don’t address that, our young people will always be at risk,” she said.
There are also concerns that some victims are now being trafficked further afield, with reports of South Africans being taken to compounds in Cambodia, where conditions are said to be even more severe.
--ChannelAfrica--
