Kenyans who left the country for Thailand narrated how they were sold off to an international cybercrime ring which demanded Ksh1.2 million to secure their release.
Speaking anonymously to the media on Sunday, November 6, two women who managed to escape recounted that a local agent had recruited them to customer service jobs where they would pocket Ksh100,000 per month.
After parting with Ksh250,000 for agent and training fees and flight tickets, they landed in Thailand. However, they travelled by bus, and then by boat to a different country.
"We crossed the river on a boat and were handed over to officials of the Laos immigration department. They told us that the customer service job was non-existent," one of the escapees recounted.
They were ferried into a warehouse which was set up with workstations and had scores of workers of different nationalities including 21 Kenyans.
Upon inquiry, they were informed that they had been recruited to the team for the purpose of committing internet fraud and were given specific instructions.
"They instructed us to fish for photos and videos of women, especially those who looked well off and travelled frequently and created accounts on dating sites.
"We would then approach Americans and lure them to send us cryptocurrency under the pretext of love," the survivor told Citizen TV.
They disclosed that the team assured them that the business was legal in the country. However, those who felt uncomfortable and wanted to leave were given extreme conditions.
"They told us that we had to pay Ksh1.2 million to secure our freedom since they had bought us. Those who could not afford it had their organs illegally harvested from them," she stated.
She disclosed that those who never met their quota were sold off to other companies or to the sex trade.
According to the survivors, they managed to get the contacts of the Kenyan Ambassador to Thailand to whom they made a distress call to. The Embassy then undertook a rescue mission and flew them back home.
The revelation comes days after the consulate issued a warning to Kenyans over the increased number of human trafficking syndicates targeting unsuspecting job seekers through lucrative jobs.
