Thousands of foreign workers, many reportedly tricked and trafficked into cyber-fraud, remain stranded in Cambodia months after regional raids on scam compounds. Police and troops in Thailand, Cambodia, and Myanmar conducted mass raids to empty and demolish some scam centres, leading to the escape of thousands.
However, many survivors from Africa, Latin America, and Asia are now stranded in Cambodia without passports, money, or a clear route home. They have reportedly drifted to Phnom Penh, sleeping rough and struggling to survive. Thousands who sought help have been placed in immigration detention centres, which are now overflowing. One former scam compound, Mango 2, has reportedly been converted into a detention centre.
Visa overstay fines, which survivors began to accrue during captivity, have mounted into thousands of dollars, leaving those unable to pay trapped. Emmanuel, 27, from Liberia, stated his overstay fee is almost $4,000 (£3,000) and that officials refused to let him leave the country. Aid groups warn of a gathering humanitarian crisis, stating that those who escaped are being treated as perpetrators rather than victims.
Amnesty International reported in June that none of the 73 survivors they interviewed had been recognised as victims of human trafficking, despite meeting the definition in the NGO's assessment. Without this recognition, individuals cannot access emergency accommodation, legal assistance, or repatriation programmes. Some experts say criminal networks have rebuilt and relocated, with new scam compounds documented in Myanmar.