KUALA LUMPUR: Some individuals who have fallen victim to job scams abroad may be reluctant to return to Malaysia as they have secured high-ranking positions within the syndicates.
Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan said that, as of Jan 21, 114 Malaysians involved in job scam syndicates in Myanmar and 157 in Thailand had been repatriated.
He said through the Malaysian diplomatic missions in Myanmar and Thailand, the government was actively working with local authorities to locate 140 Malaysians in Myanmar and 14 others in Thailand.
“It is important to note that some individuals may not wish to return to Malaysia as they have attained managerial positions within these syndicates.
“Furthermore, there is a possibility that individuals previously reported missing by their families may have already returned to Malaysia without informing the ministry or the police,” he said in a written parliamentary reply.
He was responding to a question from Oscar Ling (PH-Sibu), who inquired about the number of Malaysians trapped in Myanmar and Thailand due to job scam syndicates, including state-specific statistics and whether the government would issue an official travel advisory for these countries.
Mohamad said that the state with the highest number of Malaysians involved in job scams was Johor (19 per cent), followed by Selangor (13 per cent), Sarawak (12 per cent), Kuala Lumpur (12 per cent), and Perak (11 per cent).
He said that most job scam syndicates operated in northern Myanmar, which borders Thailand and China. This area is not controlled by the Myanmar government but by various armed ethnic groups.
Meanwhile, he said Thailand mainly served as a transit country for these syndicates to smuggle foreigners into Myanmar for work.
He added that the government had not issued an official travel advisory, as awareness campaigns were still actively being conducted among the Malaysian public.
“The issuance of a travel advisory must also take into account the strong bilateral relations between Malaysia, Thailand, and Myanmar as neighbouring countries. Instead, the Malaysian government will address this issue through all available platforms, including leveraging Malaysia’s Asean Chairmanship in 2025 to seek appropriate solutions,” he said.
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