"Thai Police Cut Telecom to Suspected Scam Centers in Cambodia, Officials Dismiss Move", 12 February 2025

Thai officials have halted cross-border telecommunication services to suspected scam centers in Poipet, Cambodia, sparking a dispute with Cambodian counterparts who denounced the move.

The infrastructure cut to the Cambodian city in Banteay Meanchey province, known for harboring scam centers, is the latest cross-border move against the illicit industry after a high-profile Chinese victim was trafficked from Thailand to a compound in Myanmar ...

Thai media reports said the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission began cutting telecom signals … from Sa Kaeo province to international private leased circuit (IPLC) companies, which supply internet and phone services to dozens of Cambodian customers, citing a contract breach for using the services to commit crimes.

… National and provincial police in Cambodia have denied the investigation and action, calling it a one-sided decision rather than a joint effort with corroboration from the Cambodian side.

“This is a unilateral announcement, they [Thai police] haven’t conducted a joint investigation with Cambodian police counterparts at all, so whether they [scam centers] exist or not, is based on the Thai’s claims,” said National Police spokesperson Chhay Kim Khoeun.

… Despite the dismissals, there have been several reports of scam centers operating in Poipet and trafficking foreign nationals into forced criminality.

…, 67 Indians were removed from a scam compound after being lured with fraudulent job offers, according to the Indian Embassy in Phnom Penh.

Separately, …, four Thais allegedly lured by scam syndicates to work in Poipet were rescued by Thai authorities, local media reported.

In a similar move …, Thai officials cut power, fuel and internet supply to parts of Myanmar in an attempt to choke scam centers…