43 Malaysians freed from phone scam syndicate in Peru were young people who arrived a week earlier

This handout picture released on October 9, 2023, by the Peruvian Ministry of Interior shows the house where 44 Asian migrants were rescued during a police raid between Oct 7 and 8 in Lima. Peruvian police rescued 44 Asian migrants held captive by the Taiwanese criminal organization Red Dragon, who were used to extort money from businessmen abroad via telephone calls from Lima, the institution reported on Monday. — Handout/Peruvian Ministry of Interior/AFP

KUALA LUMPUR: The 43 Malaysians rescued from a human trafficking syndicate operating a telecommunication fraud in Peru were young people who had arrived in Lima just a week earlier, Malaysian police said on Oct 10.

The Malaysians were ensnared in a scam that reportedly originates from crime syndicates in Taiwan and China, in which scammers impersonate banks or a public official to trick a person into disclosing personal banking information or transfer money. Hundreds of Malaysians have been lured by job offers in other South-East Asian nations only to end up being forced to defraud people through online romance or cryptocurrency schemes.