PHNOM PENH: Prime Minister Hun Manet personally inspected several former online scam compounds in Koh Kong province on Saturday (Sept 5), with the government declaring that its campaign to dismantle transnational criminal networks was far from over.
The inspection focused on locations previously identified as hotspots for technology-enabled fraud, particularly the Dara Sakor development area and several other sites authorities said had been used by criminal groups to conduct cross-border scams.
According to a government press release, illegal operations at the locations have been completely shut down, with equipment seized and related assets undergoing legal confiscation procedures.
Authorities have also introduced round-the-clock surveillance to prevent scam operations from reopening at the former sites or resuming in other forms.
“Although Cambodian authorities have announced the clearance of 86 major scam compounds and the suppression of 663 locations, our mission is not yet complete,” the government said.
It added that law enforcement agencies would continue to investigate all suspected locations, employing “iron-fist measures” to dismantle criminal networks and deny them any space to continue operating.
Manet’s visit came less than a week after authorities raided a suspected site in Peam Kay village, Koh Sdach commune, Kiri Sakor district, on Aug 29 and 30.
The operation resulted in the detention of 34 people and the seizure of hundreds of mobile phones.
The raid underscored the risk that scam networks could disperse from large compounds and relocate to smaller, more concealed premises that are harder to detect.
The inspection also highlighted the results of the national campaign against technology-enabled fraud, which has been implemented across all 25 provinces and the capital from July 2025 to Aug 31, 2026.
During the approximately 14-month period, authorities raided 663 suspected locations and closed 86 major scam compounds, which were placed under official control pending confiscation proceedings.
Authorities have also frozen more than $300 million in bank accounts suspected of being linked to online fraud, while other assets remain subject to freezing and valuation procedures.
A total of 446 cases involving 3,927 defendants from 29 nationalities are currently before the courts. The defendants are individuals whom the authorities have identified as ringleaders and senior members of foreign criminal networks.
Legal action has also extended to several public officials suspected of providing protection to, or being involved with, criminal operations.
According to the government, cases involve 15 suspects, including a deputy prosecutor, a deputy director-general of immigration, a deputy Phnom Penh municipal police chief and a former director-general at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as well as several police and military officers.
The government said more than 22,000 foreign nationals from 38 countries had also been repatriated in cooperation with the relevant embassies.
Authorities described them as people rescued from illegal labour, exploitation and torture at the hands of foreign criminal ringleaders.
The large-scale crackdown began in July 2025 as Cambodia faced increasing international scrutiny and criticism over scam compounds operating within the country.
The networks have been accused of using fraudulent job advertisements to lure people from abroad before forcing them to conduct online scams under threats, confinement and violence.
Although the government announced in late August that large-scale scam compounds had been cleared, it said investigations and enforcement action against the remaining networks would continue.
The government has encouraged members of the public and relevant partners to provide information about suspected locations so authorities can intervene promptly.
It described the prime minister’s inspection in Koh Kong as a clear political message to the international community that Cambodia would not allow any part of its territory to become a haven for transnational online scam operations. - The Phnom Penh Post/ANN
