VIENTIANE: On 23 July, Lao authorities arrested four people suspected of operating a human trafficking network that allegedly recruited Lao women for irregular marriages with foreign nationals, officials reported.
Authorities said police traced the brokers to Kham district in Xieng Khouang Province and Nongkeng village in Xaythany district, Vientiane Capital, with arrangements allegedly costing between LAK 170 million and LAK 210 million (USD 7,533 to USD 9,308).
The investigation led police to a rented house in Nalom village, Xaythany district, which the group allegedly used to arrange meetings between Lao women and foreign men. Officers raided the property and arrested four suspects, including one foreign national whose nationality remains undisclosed.
Authorities have referred the suspects for legal proceedings and continue searching for other network members.
The case echoes concerns in the US State Department’s 2025 Trafficking in Persons Report, which downgraded Laos to Tier 3, its lowest ranking.
The report noted that traffickers increasingly recruit Lao women with false promises of marriage through brokers, then subject them to sex trafficking, forced labour, or forced surrogacy abroad. It also cited endemic corruption enabling trafficking across Laos, Cambodia, and Myanmar. - LaotianTimes
