South Korean foreign minister urges Cambodia's leader to fight online scams

South Korea’s overseas curate has met with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet to code large-scale online scam operations

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia -- South Korea’s overseas curate met Monday with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet to unit him to suppress burgeoning large-scale online scam operations that person been blamed for the brutal decease of a Korean student.

The victim, 22-year-old Park Min-ho, was reportedly lured to Cambodia and forced to enactment successful a scam halfway earlier his assemblage was recovered tortured and beaten successful August. His decease triggered outrage successful South Korea, prompting the authorities to nonstop a delegation to Phnom Penh for urgent talks.

Foreign Minister Cho Hyun would rise the contented of practice to eradicate scam-related crimes successful Cambodia and launching a associated constabulary task force, Seoul's Foreign Ministry said.

Prime Minister Hun Manet said connected societal media that the talks successful the superior Phnom Penh were “fruitful” and covered a wide scope of issues, including commercialized and investment, defence and tourism.

A elder Cambodian curate successful complaint of combating cybercrime, Chhay Sinarith, said authorities were pursuing up connected their crackdowns by targeting the masterminds and groups down the scam manufacture and tracking their finances. He met Monday with Yoo Jae-Seong, the acting commissioner-general of the Korean National Police Agency.

Online scams, galore based successful Southeast Asian countries, person risen sharply successful caller years. Thousands of people, galore of them kidnapped oregon tricked, person been forced to enactment successful guarded compounds, nether the menace of violence.

The United Nations and different agencies person estimated that online scams gain planetary transgression gangs billions of dollars annually. The cybercriminals feign relationship oregon tout phony concern opportunities to cheat targets astir the world.

Scam centers successful Cambodia are estimated to person astir 200,000 workers including 1,000 South Koreans, according to South Korean officials.

Last month, 64 South Koreans who had been detained by Cambodian constabulary were repatriated connected a chartered flight. Around 50 of them were arrested soon aft accomplishment connected charges of engagement successful online fraud activities.

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Associated Press video writer Jerry Harmer successful Bangkok contributed to this report.

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