Exclusive-Scammers' abandoned Cambodia compound exposes brutality and banality of fraud

Counterfeit U.S. 100 dollar banknotes on the floor inside a compound in O'Smach used for scam operations, at the Chong Chom-O'Smach border crossing, which was bombed and occupied by the Thai military in December following clashes between Thailand and Cambodia along a disputed border area, in Samraong, Oddar Meanchey province, Cambodia, February 2, 2026. REUTERS/Chalinee Thirasupa

O'SMACH, Cambodia, Feb 6 (Reuters) - In a Cambodian compound with rooms ‌designed to look like Singapore and Australia police offices, papers were strewn across desks and floors: the detritus of a fraud factory abandoned in haste.

Among the documents were profiles of a 73-year-old Japanese retiree, complete with his phone ‌number and bank account balance, and an American woman who disclosed that she was a victim of domestic abuse. Nearby were scripts to commit love scams and impersonate police, as well as a room set up ‌to resemble a Vietnamese bank office.