KUALA LUMPUR – A Malaysian businessman escaped from the clutches of a job scam syndicate in Cambodia after his wife lodged a police report and a RM6,000 (S$1,900) ransom was paid – but some 700 others are still trapped there.
Many are facing torture in captivity, says Mr Muhammad Syafiq Pubalan Abdullah, 40.
The victims, aged between 17 and 35, were often beaten up, he said.
He, too, was beaten up daily during his first week there.
“They would beat the women with a belt. I heard a female victim was raped by 11 people after her mother filed a police report.
“I was also forced to eat pork a few times, and if we didn’t, they would beat us up.
“I was given the handphone for a short period of time and I used that to call my wife. Even then, my call would be monitored,” he said, adding that he stayed at a hostel with eight Malaysian roommates.
