Filipinos are being advised against a call center trafficking scam abroad who are reportedly preying on those who are intending to word abroad.
According to an advice from the Bureau of Immigration (BI), the latest victim was female who was repatriated from Bangkok, Thailand last March 9.
Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco narrated that the female victim claimed that she was a former online gaming company employee in Clark, Pampanga and was recruited via social media by a Filipino national only identified as “Mel” and “Sam.”
She was offered to work in a call center in Thailand.
Tansingco said the victim was then asked to pose as a tourist to Thailand and was able to depart.
He said that the victim was fetched by a private vehicle after a week in Thailand and traveled for 12 hours until reaching Myanmar.
“The work was with an online betting company with Indian nationals as their target market. She was initially told that she will be compensated $1000 to $1500 a month, but was instead required to reach a quota of half a million Indian Rupees or roughly P330,000, in order to gain commission which will be her main compensation,” he said.
According to Tansingco, the victim was forced to work at least 12 hours a day, without a day off.
She was also required to pay P170,000 for her release and another P28,000 to cross the river back to Thailand.
It was then that she sought help from the Philippine Embassy in Thailand who helped her with her repatriation back to the Philippines.
“This is literally modern-day slavery, and victims were required to pay for their release from the syndicate. We reiterate our call for Filipinos not to fall for this kind of scam, always secure work legally through the Department of Migrant workers,” Tansingco said.
Catherine R. Cueto
