US imposes sanctions on Cambodian tycoon over scam centers
Individual targeted is close to Cambodian leader
Sanctions discussed for months, were repeatedly delayed, sources say
US-Cambodia ties strained by Phnom Penh's close links to China
Recasts with announcement
By David Brunnstrom, Francesco Guarascio and Poppy McPherson
WASHINGTON, Sept 12 (Reuters) - The United States announced sanctions on Thursday on Cambodian businessman and ruling party senator Ly Yong Phat as well as several entities over alleged abuses related to workers who were trafficked and forced to work in online scam centers.
The move, plans for which were first reported by Reuters, comes at a delicate phase in relations between the United States and Cambodia, which has moved ever closer to Washington's strategic rival China despite U.S. efforts to woo its new leader Hun Manet, son of longtime strongman Hun Sen.
Ly Yong Phat was appointed Hun Sen’s personal adviser in 2022.
The U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control said the sanctions targeted Ly's L.Y.P. Group Co. conglomerate and O-Smach Resort.
It said it was also sanctioning Cambodia-based Garden City Hotel, Koh Kong Resort, and Phnom Penh Hotel for being owned or controlled by Ly.
Bradley Smith, the Treasury's acting under secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said the move was made to "hold accountable those involved in human trafficking and other abuses, while also disrupting their ability to operate investment fraud schemes that target countless unsuspecting individuals, including Americans."
Cambodia and other countries in Southeast Asia have emerged in recent years as the epicentre of a multibillion-dollar criminal industry targeting victims across the world with fraudulent crypto and other schemes, often operating from fortified compounds run by Chinese syndicates and staffed by trafficked workers.
The Treasury statement said scammers leverage fictitious identities and elaborate narratives to develop trusted relationships and deceive victims.
In many cases, this involves convincing victims to invest in virtual currency, or in some cases, over-the-counter foreign exchange schemes, it said.
The statement said traffickers force victims to work up to 15 hours a day and, in some cases, "resell" victims to other scam operations or subject them to sex trafficking.
It noted that the U.S. State Department's annual Trafficking in Persons Report this year highlighted abuses in O’Smach and Koh Kong and that official complicity in trafficking crimes remained widespread, resulting in selective and often politically motivated enforcement of laws.
Americans have been targeted by many of the scams. In 2022, in the U.S alone, victims reported losses of $2.6 billion from pig butchering – a type of long-term scam – and other crypto fraud, more than double the previous year, according to the FBI.
The Treasury report said that for more than two years the O-Smach Resort hasbeen investigated by police and publicly reported on "for extensive and systemic serious human rights abuse."
It said victimsreported being lured therewith false employment opportunities, having phones and passports confiscated upon arrival, and being forced to work scam operations.
"People who called for help reported being beaten, abused with electric shocks, made to pay a hefty ransom, or threatened with being sold to other online scam gangs," it said, adding that there had beentwo reports of victims jumping to their death from buildings within theresort.
The report said localauthorities hadconducted repeated rescue missions, including in October 2022 and March 2024, freeing victims of various nationalities, including Chinese, Indian, Indonesian, Malaysian, Singaporean, Thai, and Vietnamese.
The U.S state department said in June that Cambodian government officials were complicit in trafficking and that someofficials owned facilities used by scam operators.
Spokespeople for Cambodia's government and foreign ministry did not answer phone calls or respond to messages seeking comment when asked about the sanctions.
The U.S. and other governments have repeatedly engaged with Cambodia to put a end to the scam centers.
Washington had considered sanctions for months, sources briefed on the matter told Reuters. They said the decision was initially expected earlier this year but had been delayed.
A change of leadership to West Point-educated Hun Manet last year was seen by U.S. officials as an opportunity to mend ties with Cambodia, but despite U.S. efforts, its ties with China have steadily grown. Beijing sentwarships to Cambodiathis year and is backing the expansion of a key naval base.
Reporting by Francesco Guarascio and Poppy McPherson; additional reporting from Simon Lewis; editing by Shri Navaratnam and Deepa Babington
免責聲明: XM Group提供線上交易平台的登入和執行服務，允許個人查看和/或使用網站所提供的內容，但不進行任何更改或擴展其服務和訪問權限，並受以下條款與條例約束：（i）條款與條例；（ii）風險提示；（iii）完全免責聲明。網站內部所提供的所有資訊，僅限於一般資訊用途。請注意，我們所有的線上交易平台內容並不構成，也不被視為進入金融市場交易的邀約或邀請 。金融市場交易會對您的投資帶來重大風險。
所有缐上交易平台所發佈的資料，僅適用於教育/資訊類用途，不包含也不應被視爲適用於金融、投資稅或交易相關諮詢和建議，或是交易價格紀錄，或是任何金融商品或非應邀途徑的金融相關優惠的交易邀約或邀請。
本網站的所有XM和第三方所提供的内容，包括意見、新聞、研究、分析、價格其他資訊和第三方網站鏈接，皆爲‘按原狀’，並作爲一般市場評論所提供，而非投資建議。請理解和接受，所有被歸類為投資研究範圍的相關内容，並非爲了促進投資研究獨立性，而根據法律要求所編寫，而是被視爲符合營銷傳播相關法律與法規所編寫的内容。請確保您已詳讀並完全理解我們的非獨立投資研究提示和風險提示資訊，相關詳情請點擊 這裡查看。
