The National Bureau of Investigation yesterday disclosed the rescue of three Filipinos who escaped from a scam hub in Cambodia where they were detained and allegedly tortured.

The three Filipinos, whose identities were not disclosed, arrived in the Philippines on Sunday, 16 March, after NBI officials were sent to fetch them in Cambodia, where they had been hiding in a safehouse following their escape, NBI Director Jaime B. Santiago said.

Santiago said in a press conference that the operation was very successful, as the four NBI agents sent to Cambodia retrieved them and brought them back to the Philippines.

The NBI chief said, “sila po ay biktima ng mga scammers (they are victims of scammers).”

“They were brought to Cambodia and they became scammers,” Santiago said, noting that the three left the Philippines illegally through the country’s backdoor.

Further investigation will be conducted by the NBI, which is coordinating with Cambodian authorities and the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol), which could conduct a raid at the compound in Cambodia where the victims were held.

The victims told Santiago that about 40 Filipinos are still being kept at the compound and forced to work as scammers.

“To our countrymen, do not me tempted to offers of large salaries,” Santiago told the public, adding, “Only believe accredited recruitment agencies.”

NBI Executive Assistant for Special Concerns Yentl D. Malicad said the three victims told them that, in January, they saw a post online offering work as customer service representatives for a casino company in Cambodia with a salary of $1,000.

The three left the Philippines on January 7 without going through the proper procedure.

They flew to Dipolog City, where they boarded a ferry to Basilan, then to Tawi-Tawi, where they boarded small boats. Afterward, they were transferred to a fishing boat that brought them to Sabah, Malaysia, before continuing their journey until they reached Cambodia.

Instead of working as customer service representatives, they were not allowed to leave the compound and were told to scam foreigners aged 55 and above.

Malicad said that after a month, the victims decided to leave after each received a salary of $300 instead of the $1,000 promised. He said the Chinese bosses found out about their plans to leave, and the three were taken out in the middle of the night. One victim was detained and denied food and water, while the other two were beaten up by 15 Chinese men.