BUKIT MERTAJAM – A mother is begging for her son to be saved after he was deceived by a job scam syndicate and is now being held hostage by his employer in Cambodia.
Khor Ca Bo, 68, said her son, Tay Poh Chai, 39, had gone to Cambodia last December, after being offered a job in the gambling industry with a salary of RM8,000 to RM9,000 a month.
“My son worked as a part-time electrician here. He was invited to go to Cambodia by his friend because the salary was good. But I and other family members told him not to go,” she said.
“Yet he stubbornly went because he said his income would be more and he could save money.
“After he went to Cambodia, we didn’t communicate much. However, on May 28, he said he had been locked up by his employer, and his employer demanded a ransom of US$15,000 (RM66,000) to free him.
“Concerned for his safety, we proceeded to lodge a police report on May 28,” she told a press conference at the office of Bukit Mertajam MP Steven Sim here today.
Her other son, Tay Poh Heng, a beehoon seller, said his younger brother was tortured by electrocution and that many other Malaysians in Cambodia were facing the same situation.
Sim said he was visited by the victim’s family yesterday, who asked for financial assistance as the closing date for the US$15,000 ransom was tomorrow.
He then contacted Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Abdullah, and all information about the victim was handed over to the Malaysian embassy in Cambodia.
“The victim and his family suffered from severe mental stress, and the victim also said that he wanted to commit suicide,” Sim said.
Sim said he was informed that if the ransom payment was not made, the victim would be sold or have his internal organs sold to a syndicate.
“This is not the first case, but if there is no serious action from the government, this will not be the last case. I hope the government can act decisively,” he said.
“My only advice to people is to check with the authorities before they accept a job overseas to avoid becoming a victim of this syndicate,” he added.
In April, police rescued 16 Malaysians who were victims of a job offer fraud syndicate in Cambodia.
They were allegedly locked up, slapped, beaten, and injured with electric shocks, while under the control of an international fraud syndicate since October last year. – The Vibes, June 14, 2022
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