NIA files chargesheet against five in Cambodia cyber slavery, trafficking case

NIA files chargesheet against five accused in Cambodia-linked cyber slavery and human trafficking case involving Indian youth lured with fake job offers abroad.

Updated on: May 16, 2026, 11:47:18 IST

By Neeraj Chauhan, New Delhi

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The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has filed a chargesheet against five persons, including an alleged mastermind, in a human trafficking and cyber slavery case linked to Cambodia, in which Indian youth were allegedly lured with fake job offers and forced into illegal work abroad, the agency said on Saturday.

NIA exposes cross-border trafficking syndicate, files chargesheet in cyber slavery case linked to Cambodia involving lured Indian job seekers and forced labour. (ANI)

The prime suspect named in the chargesheet has been identified as Anand Kumar Singh alias Munna, while the others charged include Abhay Nath Dubey, Abhiranjan Kumar, Rohit Yadav, and Prahlad Kumar Singh.

“The accused were involved in luring Indian youth to Cambodia on the pretext of legitimate jobs and handsome salaries, as part of an organised human trafficking syndicate. The victims’ passports were seized and they were forced to work for scam companies in Cambodia, with any resistance on their part met with mental and physical torture, including electric shocks, forceful confinement, denial of food and water etc,” the agency said in a statement.

NIA investigations found Anand to be the kingpin, involved in recruitment of youth through various sub-agents or travel agents in India. “He was working with associates in Cambodia to illegally traffic the victims to that country. He was charging USD 2,000–3,000 for each youth ‘sold’ to a fake company,” the agency added.

The government last year brought back around 1,000 citizens who were working in the slave compounds in Myanmar.

Multiple agencies are investigating the cyber slavery cases. Investigations by agencies in New Delhi have revealed that these “slave compounds”, operating in Myanmar and neighbouring areas, were major hubs for the execution of digital arrest frauds in India.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which is also investigating a few cases related to illegal human trafficking in Southeast Asia, said in a statement last month that the money generated in these scam centres was being “controlled by masterminds from Cambodia, China and Hong Kong”.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Neeraj Chauhan
Neeraj Chauhan is a senior journalist with Hindustan Times and an investigative reporter specialising in national security, terrorism, organised crime, narcotics, corruption, financial crime and complex investigations. With over 21 years of experience across Hindustan Times, The Times of India, The Indian Express and The Pioneer, he has built deep expertise in India’s internal security and law-enforcement landscape. Neeraj has extensively covered India’s principal investigative, intelligence and security agencies, including the NIA, CBI, ED, IB, R&AW, MHA and other central security forces. His work has included deeply reported investigations into terrorism, terror financing, cross-border crime, narcotics trafficking, cybercrime, financial fraud and political and corporate corruption. He has reported on some of the most significant terror attacks and security developments in India over the past two decades, including the Delhi serial blasts, the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, the 2019 Pulwama terror attack and the recent Pahalgam attack. His reporting has also chronicled the rise and decline of the Indian Mujahideen, the activities and subsequent crackdown on the Popular Front of India (PFI), Islamist extremist networks, the conflict in Jammu and Kashmir, insurgencies in the Northeast and Maoist violence. Some of Neeraj’s major breaking stories are in Aryan Khan drug case, Sushant Singh Rajput suicide, interception of a 3,000-kg Afghan heroin consignment worth about ₹21,000 crore at Mundra port, Sri Lanka easter bombings, Aarushi-Hemraj murders in Noida, 2G scam, coal block allocation scam, AgustWestland VVIP chopper deal and major bank frauds and extradition cases involving Mehul Choksi, Nirav Modi and Vijay Mallya. His reporting is marked by an ability to cultivate sources, analyse confidential and complex documents, and follow investigations over several years—from the initial breakthrough to chargesheets, trials and international legal proceedings. He specialises in making complicated security and investigative developments accessible while examining their wider implications for governance and public policy. A Chevening South Asia Journalism Programme Fellow at the University of Westminster, Neeraj also spent time at the Financial Times as part of the fellowship. He was also a Robert Bosch Media Ambassadors India-Germany Fellow, studying at the University of Tübingen and working with Der Tagesspiegel in Berlin. He has previously taught investigative journalism and crime reporting as a guest faculty member at the Times School of Journalism. Over more than two decades, Neeraj has established himself as an authoritative voice on India’s national security and investigative landscape, with his reporting closely followed by officials, investigators, lawyers, policymakers and readers seeking insight into some of the country’s most complex and consequential developments.Read More

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