A sprawling compound on the Thai-Cambodian border, containing mock-up banks and police offices used for industrial-scale fraud, has been uncovered by the Thai military. The site, located in the Cambodian border town of O'Smach, features rooms designed to look like branches of Vietnam's OCB bank, as well as fake police offices for Australia, Singapore and China, complete with uniforms, badges and scripts for phone scams.
The Guardian was given access to the compound during a media visit facilitated by the Thai military, which bombed the site and seized control during border clashes with Cambodia last year. A ceasefire was agreed in December, but Thailand has retained control of the area. Cambodia's information minister accused Thailand of using scam centre concerns as a pretext to undermine Cambodian sovereignty.
The building shows signs of a hasty departure, with bullet holes, debris, uneaten food and vast piles of paperwork left behind. The operation appears highly organised, with rooms filled with desks for 30 people, noise-cancelling foam, and whiteboards tracking workers' targets. A notebook targeting Brazilian victims includes daily updates, and documents provide tips on luring victims through romance scams and fake investments.
Scam centres are a hugely lucrative industry across Southeast Asia, with online fraud schemes in Cambodia alone estimated to generate $12.5bn annually. After international pressure, including UK and US sanctions, Cambodia has promised to crack down on cybercrime and says it has closed 200 scam sites. The alleged scamming kingpin Chen Zhi was extradited to China in January.
