About 540 Indians lured into a cyber crime network with fake job offers have been rescued from Thailand and other countries. An Indian Air Force (IAF) flight carrying 283 rescued nationals returned yesterday and a second flight will bring back the rest from Mae Sot today. At least 42 of them are from the Telugu states, said Union Minister Bandi Sanjay, sharing information about the repatriation process.

These nationals were lured with fake job offers and sold to fake call centres involved in cyber fraud in Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar. “These persons were subsequently made to indulge in cybercrime and engage in other fraudulent activities in scam centres operating in regions along the Myanmar-Thailand border,” said the Ministry of External Affairs.

The Myanmar army rescued them.

Indian embassies in Myanmar and Thailand secured the repatriation in coordination with the local authorities, the MEA said. They were brought to Mae Sot city in Thailand from where they are being flown to Delhi.

The Golden Triangle Region in Southeast Asia, where the international borders of Thailand, Laos, and Myanmar meet, is a cyber crime hotspot where such fake call centres operate.

The government said it keeps warning of such rackets that target Indians with fake job offers. It has advised people to verify the foreign employers through the Indian missions abroad, the recruiting agents, and companies before accepting any such job offer.

Last December, an agent accused of luring several young Indians to commit such crimes was arrested from Hyderabad. Kamran Haider alias Zaidi, who carried a reward of Rs 2 lakh, was caught after a 2,500-km case.