Bengaluru: What promised to be a lucrative corporate overseas job opportunity turned into an ordeal of forced labour, brutal beatings and electric shocks for two men from Kolar Gold Fields (KGF) as they were trafficked by a cyber-slavery cartel operating in Thailand-Myanmar border area. The duo was fortunately rescued in a well-coordinated action by multiple Indian agencies.Preetham and Sanjay landed at Kempegowda International Airport safely. Their rescue operation was carried out by Karnataka Cyber Command Centre, Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre and Embassy of India in Myanmar, said director general of police (Karnataka Cyber Command-Bengaluru) Pronab Mohanty.The high-voltage drama started when Preetham and Sanjay, both around 30 years old who studied up to II PU, decided to search for new job avenues after their BPO (business process outsourcing) shut down four months ago. Desperate for employment, they applied for “Chat Process” job openings in Thailand advertised on Facebook.After clicking a link in the post, they underwent an online interview and were issued visas and flight tickets. Just five hours prior to their departure last week, a man identifying himself as “Roy,” who claimed to be their line manager, contacted them.“When we landed in Bangkok, we were picked up in a cab and met three women and a man who took us to a house,” the victims said in their official statements. “The next morning, two men on motorbikes drove us to a riverbank. We were forced onto a boat guarded by men in military uniforms carrying machine guns.Forced labour, torture in compoundThe men were transported over 450km inland by car to a heavily fortified compound allegedly operated by Chinese management. Instead of the promised customer support positions, they were forced into cyber fraud campaigns targeting Indian expats in United States. According to the victims, the compound housed captive workers from various Indian states, all subjected to extreme coercion.16-hour workdays, 1 hour for phone callsAccording to them, employees faced strict surveillance and severe penalties for being even 10 seconds late. Infractions triggered a brutal tier of discipline starting with verbal warnings, progressing to sit-ups, forced running (30-40 laps), beatings with wooden sticks and solitary confinement with electric shocks. Victims were handed their mobile phones for only one hour every day under supervision.During their brief window with a mobile phone, Preetham and Sanjay managed to contact a driver working for an investigating agency in Bengaluru and shared a covert video recording of their location and condition. The driver forwarded the video to a senior woman investigation officer, who in turn alerted high-ranking IPS officers. As part of a multi-agency operation, the duo was rescued along Thailand-Myanmar border late Sunday night.
