Phnom Penh authorities on April 12 raided a suspected online scam operation in Wyndham Grand Phnom Penh Capital in the center of Phnom Penh, detaining 311 people of five nationalities, most of them Chinese, in one of the latest crackdowns on transnational cyber fraud networks.
According to the Commission for Combating Online Scams (CCOS), quoted by local media Fresh News, the suspects used different locations in Cambodia to conduct online fraud, including investment scams, schemes posing as investment opportunities under a company named “Nanhua Singapore” to target victims in Malaysia. They are also alleged to have committed cryptocurrency-related fraud, and scams impersonating government officials targeting victims in Taiwan. Authorities also found drugs at the site.
The suspects as well as evidence collected at the scene have been passed to the Phnom Penh Police Station for legal action.
The police raid follows the approval of an online scam law by the Senate, which stipulates life in prison for those found guilty of the crime.
Phnom Penh Governor Khuong Sreng said authorities have inspected about 4,000 buildings in the capital suspected of being used for online scam operations.
In recent weeks, city authorities carried out a series of crackdown targeting fraud schemes, including fake investment scams aimed at victims in Europe and fraudulent online shopping schemes.
On April 7, national police raided nine suspected online scam sites in Bavet, detaining more than 300 foreign nationals. Following the operation, the Commercial Gambling Management Commission of Cambodia revoked the license of Golden Galaxy Casino on April 8 after an alleged link to online scam activities was found.
Prime Minister Hun Manet has previously said they are committed to combating online scams and “eliminating the black economy”, and promoting what it described as “white economy.”
International pressure on Phnom Penh has risen in recent years to dismantle scam operations that reportedly defraud victims worldwide of more than $12.5 billion annually.
The nationwide crackdown, aimed at eliminating scam networks, was expanded in January on the back of international scrutiny and the extradition of Chen Zhi, an alleged scam network leader and former adviser to the prime minister, to China.
Cambodia has deported more than 48,000 foreigners suspected of being involved in illicit online scam operations since 2023.
Chhay Sinarith, chairman of CCOS secretariat, said authorities have shut down more than 250 scam centers, including 92 casinos, and arrested 800 ringleaders since July last year.
Authorities estimate that over 210,000 foreign nationals have left the country voluntarily as enforcement tightened, while several ringleaders “remain under active investigation” after fleeing their bases.
Am Sam Ath, operations director of Licadho, said the government has in recent months launched a series of large-scale crackdowns on online scams, describing the issue as deeply rooted in Cambodia with serious impacts that require strong political will to address.
“The government and authorities must show strong commitment to cracking down on online scams,” he said, noting that the recent passing of the online scam law could improve enforcement efforts.
However, he said, crackdowns and arrests have affected Cambodians, while foreign victims who escaped scam compounds need greater support from embassies and the Cambodian government.
Some analysts called the issue a “humanitarian crisis” after trafficked victims escaped prior to raids, but received limited assistance to return to their home countries.
Sam Ath alleged that some embassies have been slow to respond to their citizens’ circumstances despite government efforts to address the issue.
Dor Samphors, spokesperson for Phnom Penh City Hall, declined to respond regarding the outcome of the crackdown and the joint raid on Sunday, referring CamboJA News to national police.
“You can seek all the information from the national police because I don’t handle this issue,” said Samphors.
Ministry of Interior spokesperson Touch Sokhak, Deputy Commissioner General of the National Police and Phnom Penh Municipal Police Chief Chuon Narin, and Phnom Penh Governor Khuong Sreng could not be reached for comment.
