Inside Cambodia's Abandoned Scam Compound: Fake Banks and Police Stations Revealed
Walking through the abandoned scam compound in Cambodia feels like stepping into a meticulously crafted illusion. Fake rooms, elaborate props, and detailed scripts were used to lure victims into handing over money in what authorities describe as an industrial-scale fraud operation.
A Sprawling Deception Uncovered
The sprawling compound, located in the Cambodian border town of O'Smach, was uncovered by the Thai military during border clashes last year. It features mock-up rooms designed to look like legitimate institutions, including a convincing replica of a Vietnamese bank branch.
The fake bank branch includes customer service desks divided by plastic screens, complete with landline phones, promotional leaflets, and staff business cards. A waiting area and private meeting room all bear the OCB bank's logo and trademark green colour, creating a convincing facade for unsuspecting victims.
This is not an isolated deception. The six-floor building contains rooms designed to resemble police offices from Australia, Singapore, and China, complete with fake uniforms, badges, and carefully crafted scripts to be read over the phone to victims.
International Targeting and Elaborate Schemes
Documents and props discovered inside reveal that scammers behind the compound targeted people across Asia, Australia, and South America. The operation appears highly organised, with rooms filled with desks for 30 people, each padded with noise-cancelling foam to prevent detection.
Whiteboards track workers' targets, with notes like "No money, already took 279k" left beside the name of an apparent victim. A notebook found in a room targeting Brazilian victims includes daily updates, with one November entry reading: "For today there is no customer [who] will transfer the money to us – they are trying to grab new customer and talk with old."
Border Conflict and Territorial Disputes
The Thai military bombed the site and seized control of the area during border clashes with Cambodia last year, claiming it was used by the Cambodian military to launch drone operations. A ceasefire was agreed in December after three weeks of fighting, but Thailand has retained control of the area despite protests from Cambodia.
Cambodian information minister Neth Pheaktra accused Thailand of using "so-called scam centre concerns as a pretext for actions that undermine Cambodia's territorial sovereignty." The buildings at O'Smach show signs of conflict, with bullet holes, collapsed ceiling panels, shattered glass, and debris covering the floors.
Evidence of Hasty Departure and Extensive Fraud Tools
Workers and their bosses appear to have fled as fighting escalated, leaving behind uneaten food, drinks, and vast piles of paperwork. Among the abandoned items are various tools used to carry out fraud schemes and stacks of what appear to be fake $100 notes.
Documents written in multiple languages, taken as evidence by Thai authorities, provide detailed tips on how to lure people into fake investments, including through romance scams. One guide advises: "Create a touching family story (example about losing a love ones, struggling alone etc) to encourage clients to spontaneously express concern and empathy."
The document suggests scammers should "create a sense of fantasy by using phrases like 'future plans' or 'we can do this together someday'" and provides specific phrases like "I think I'm getting used to talking to you every day."
Sophisticated Training and Targeting Methods
Bosses refined workers' scamming abilities through multiple choice quizzes. One test asks workers to fill the blanks: "The standard for finding customers on social platforms are Gender __ Nationality __ Age __. And whether he looks like a real rich man." The answers reveal the targeting strategy: "Male", "North American" and "40-65."
Pol Maj Gen Siriwat Deepor, deputy spokesperson for the Royal Thai police, said scam networks were structured like companies, with training departments, finance sections for money laundering, and creative sections that develop deception strategies for different countries. "Tactics changed by the season," he added.
Beyond Romance Fraud: Impersonating Authorities Worldwide
The scams in O'Smach extend beyond romance fraud. Scripts scattered across desks show how workers presented themselves as members of police and other agencies from countries around the world.
- In one script, victims in India are told they are being contacted regarding claims of "illegal advertising" and "harassing text messages" sent from their mobile number.
- Another script, found in a fake Australian police office, instructs scam workers to call restaurant owners claiming they are from a police department needing to order boxed meals for an event.
- At a fake Singaporean police office, a fraudulent letter stamped "notary public" accuses an individual of money-laundering.
There are also piles of papers with the names and phone numbers of targets, indicating extensive victim databases.
Living Conditions and Motivational Slogans
Workers appear to have slept in shared rooms inside the buildings, with bunk beds accommodating eight to a room. The corridors feature motivational slogans on the walls, including: "Nothing is impossible, the word itself says I'm possible!" and "The best view comes after the hardest climb."
A pair of handcuffs slung over a staircase raises questions about whether scam workers were victims of trafficking. Many former workers from compounds elsewhere across the region have reported being tricked into travelling to scam centres, lured with promises of legitimate jobs then held against their will.
Scale of the Operation and International Response
Thai authorities estimate about 20,000 workers were based across the wider compound, which includes 157 buildings, 28 of which are suspected of being used for scamming. Workers escaped on buses before buildings were targeted by Thai forces in December.
Scam centres have proliferated across south-east Asian countries in recent years. In Cambodia alone, online fraud schemes are estimated to generate $12.5bn annually – half the country's formal GDP, according to the United States Institute of Peace.
After mounting international pressure, including UK and US sanctions imposed in October against alleged scamming kingpin Chen Zhi, Cambodia has promised to crack down on cybercrime. Chen, a Chinese-born businessman who built a vast conglomerate in Cambodia, was extradited to China in January.
Cambodia pledged to eliminate scamming by the end of April and says it has closed 200 scam sites. However, the O'Smach area was previously named by the US Trafficking in Persons report in 2024, which noted reports of online compounds in the town using forced labour.
Ongoing Challenges and Political Complications
The same report alleged that the involvement of officials and elites in Cambodia's scam industry had "resulted in selective and politically motivated enforcement of laws." Kristina Amerhauser, senior analyst at the Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime, said Chen's arrest was important but added: "Many other well-known scam bosses continue to operate with impunity alongside the local elites and politicians who protect and conspire with them."
Thai authorities have said they are taking various steps to tackle scam centres, including increasing efforts to tackle mule accounts used for money laundering. Last year, the country's deputy finance minister, Vorapak Tanyawong, resigned after claims of alleged links to the scam industry – allegations he denied.
Cambodia has not commented on the fate of workers from O'Smach or whether it had previously investigated claims related to the site. The discovery of this elaborate compound highlights the sophisticated nature of transnational cybercrime operations in the region and the complex geopolitical challenges in addressing them.
