Pune:
Beed case exposes risks of Indians being lured into Myanmar cybercrime network
Shrinivas Deshpande
shrinivas.deshpande@htlive.com
Pune: A Beed police investigation into the alleged trafficking of a graphic designer to Myanmar has revealed the suspected scale of a cybercrime recruitment network with around 2,000 Indians possibly trapped, according to Beed superintendent of police Navneet Kanwat, who is also the nodal officer investigating such cases.
The case has highlighted how Indians are allegedly lured through online advertisements offering lucrative jobs in Thailand before being moved towards the Myanmar border and forced to work in cyber fraud operations.
On June 1, Swapnil Kalunkhe, 24, from Beed, came across a Facebook advertisement offering a data entry and graphic design job in Bangkok with a monthly salary of ₹70,000. After contacting the advertiser through WhatsApp and completing the required paperwork, he flew from Pune to Bangkok on June 4.
The promise of a well-paying job, however, allegedly turned into a nightmare soon after his arrival. On June 5, Kalunkhe called his wife, Sangita, expressing doubts about the work environment. The following day, he told her during a WhatsApp call that unidentified men had transported him from Bangkok to an isolated location along the Myanmar-Thailand border.
“They are forcing my husband to work 16 to 18 hours a day in online fraud operations. If he refuses to work or fails to meet expectations, they subject him to severe physical torture, give him electric shocks, beat him and repeatedly threaten to kill him,” Sangita alleged.
{{/usCountry}}“They are forcing my husband to work 16 to 18 hours a day in online fraud operations. If he refuses to work or fails to meet expectations, they subject him to severe physical torture, give him electric shocks, beat him and repeatedly threaten to kill him,” Sangita alleged.
{{/usCountry}}According to Kanwat, the Beed case is not an isolated incident. Similar cases have been reported from Nashik, Dharashiv and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, and police are collecting information on other possible victims from across Maharashtra.
“Based on our investigation so far, we suspect that more than 2,000 Indians may be trapped in cybercrime operations in Myanmar. The victims are allegedly lured through attractive advertisements offering lucrative jobs abroad, particularly in Thailand,” Kanwat said.
Police said that via social media advertisements, the accused target job seekers by offering high salaries. After connecting via the link, the victims contact the middlemen who handle the entire recruitment process. After initial discussions over phone regarding salary expectations, the accused gauge possible victims and their skills accordingly providing further communication and joining dates.
After reaching Thailand, the victims are allegedly transported towards the Myanmar border, where some areas are controlled by armed groups. “Once there, they are allegedly forced to work in cybercrime compounds and carry out online fraud targeting people across the world. We are investigating the role of Indian mediators involved in recruiting and transporting these individuals and are coordinating with central agencies and other authorities for their identification and rescue,” Kanwat said.
Police suspect Indian intermediaries are facilitating the travel of recruits and connecting them with an international trafficking network. In the Beed case, the suspected mediator is originally from Satara and is currently believed to be near the Myanmar-Thailand border, police said.
Sangita told HT that her husband had informed her that an estimated 700 to 800 Indian nationals were allegedly trapped in the same facility, including around 20 to 25 people from Maharashtra.
A similar case has emerged from Dharashiv, where a hotel management student allegedly responded to a Facebook advertisement in April offering a Bangkok job with a monthly salary of ₹80,000. He left for Pune on April 29 and reached Bangkok on May 1.
On May 7, he allegedly told his mother that unidentified men had taken him away from outside the airport. He was subsequently transported by boat to an undisclosed location instead of being taken to the promised hotel job, according to his family.
His brother, speaking to HT on condition of anonymity, said the youth told the family that he was being forced to participate in online cyber fraud and work for around 18 hours a day. His passport, mobile phone and other documents were allegedly confiscated, while those failing to meet targets were allegedly assaulted, subjected to electric shocks and threatened with death.
The youth managed to share his location with his family on June 17. It was reportedly traced to an area near the Thailand-Myanmar border, following which contact with him was lost.
Activist Siddhanth Kulkarni, who has been assisting distressed Indians stranded abroad, has shared details of other possible victims with Kanwat. According to police, passport details of around 20 more individuals were provided to the authorities.
“We have filed cases in Nashik and Dharashiv districts, and we are gathering information on similar cases reported anywhere across Maharashtra,” Kanwat said. Police have approached the respective embassy and are coordinating with central agencies as the legal process continues.
The Thailand-Myanmar frontier has emerged as a key node in Southeast Asia’s cyber-scam networks. Along parts of the border, criminal enterprises reportedly operate large compounds in areas where armed groups and militia control, coupled with limited state presence, can complicate law enforcement.
This creates a pathway through which a person can legally enter Thailand before allegedly being moved through irregular channels towards Myanmar, where they may be forced into cybercrime operations.
The suspected scale of the trafficking is also reflected in government data. In a written reply in the Rajya Sabha in February, the Ministry of External Affairs said the exact number of Indian nationals stranded in scam centres in Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar was not known. It said Indians had been lured through fraudulent recruitment agents, agencies and illegal channels.
However, the number of Indians rescued from the three countries has risen sharply. India recorded 1,594 nationals rescued from Myanmar in 2025, compared with 147 in 2024, 89 in 2023 and 338 in 2022. Cambodia accounted for 1,300 rescues in 2025, while 1,421 Indians were rescued from Laos. Together, the three countries accounted for more than 4,300 Indian rescues in 2025 alone.