Caught in Cambodia’s Scam Machine: Part 2
6/21/202632 min
PART 2: With the Cambodian government’s ongoing crackdown on the scam industry, tens of thousands of former scammers are stranded on the streets of Phnom Penh. Are they being treated as criminals or as victims themselves of a global industry designed to extract their labor?
In part 2 of our series on The Sunday Story, investigative reporter Shibani Mahtani continues the story of one Ugandan scam worker as he tries to make his way home.
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First 90 secondsAyesha Rascoe· Host0:00
I'm Ayesha Rascoe, and you're listening to the Sunday Story from Up First. This is the second of our two-part series with investigative reporter Shibani Mahtani, a story about the people who were lured into working in the global cyber scam industry. Now, if you haven't heard part one, you can go back and listen to that now in the feed. You'll definitely want the start of this story. At the end of part one, Schwabe walked out through the gates of a scam compound after working for almost a year as a scammer.
Shuaib· Guest0:36
Right now we just want to go back home.
Ayesha Rascoe· Host0:37
Home, to Uganda. Instead, he would wind up on the streets of Phnom Penh. Like tens of thousands of others who've been released in government raids on scam compounds across the country, Schwabe needed emergency shelter, food, and legal support. But instead of aid, there would be obstacles almost impossible to overcome. Amnesty International is calling the current situation in Cambodia a humanitarian crisis, and says migrants are falling through the cracks. Shibani Mahtani continues Schwabe's story.
Shibani Mahtani1:17
So after Schwabe walked out of the scam compound, he felt optimistic. His plan was pretty simple. He would go to the airport and get on a plane, just like when he arrived,