MIRI – Sarawak Police are trying to locate and help 51 Sarawakians who were lured into travelling to Myanmar to take on attractive job offers at casinos and hotels there which turned out to be non-existent.
The state police chief, Commissioner Datuk Mohd Azman Ahmad Sapri, said the police have received reports from the families of these 51 people.
All the victims, who have not returned after going to Myanmar, hail from Kuching, Sibu and Miri.
"They had been lured by syndicates to go to Myanmar to take up attractive jobs in casinos and hotels, with claims that would be paid in US dollars.
"They had found out upon their arrival there that there are no such jobs and they had been cheated by the so-called employment agents.
"They had made contact with their families back home and their families here lodged reports asking us police to help locate and rescue these Sarawakians who are now stranded in Myanmar," he told the media in Kuching yesterday.
Azman urged the public to be wary of attractive jobs offered by foreign entities.
There have been many similar previous cases of Malaysians being hoodwinked by fake claims of employment overseas.
On September 23, two young Sarawakian men had allegedly been enticed to make their way to Thailand for work by an advertisement on social media.
They were forced by syndicates there to go to Myanmar to operate for a scam syndicate targetting victims in that country.
The two young men from Sarikei district are aged 29 and 35 and related to each other.
The sister of the 29-year-old man lodged a police report saying that her brother and relative had sent her messages over Whatsapp that they were being forcibly held by scammers in Myanmar. – The Vibes, November 10, 2023
