Phnom Penh: The deputy spokesperson at Cambodia’s Ministry of Interior has expressed his dismay and questioned a single-sourced report by a foreign cyber scam victim rescued by Cambodia.

According to Agence Kampuchea Presse, the deputy spokesperson, H.E. Dr. Touch Sokhak, stated that after being rescued, the victim, a 31-year-old Malaysian man named Jimmy, did not provide any information to assist Cambodian authorities in investigating and identifying the perpetrators who kidnapped him.

However, the man gave an interview to an international media outlet, China Press, in which he claimed that in July of the previous year, a friend paid for his flight ticket and promised to find him a job in Cambodia. Jimmy recounted to China Press that once in Cambodia, the friend deceived him into joining an online scam operation, where he was coerced into defrauding others to earn at least US$13,500 per month before being allowed access to a mobile phone.

Jimmy alleged that his non-compliance resulted in him being beaten, starved, and forced to consume pork and rat meat. H.E. Dr. Touch Sokhak expressed regret that the interview with Jimmy was published without a factual basis and proper fact-checking, which he believes has damaged Cambodia’s reputation despite its ongoing efforts to combat scam activities and rescue victims.

Despite Jimmy’s lack of cooperation, Dr. Touch Sokhak affirmed that Cambodian authorities are thoroughly investigating the case, not only to dismantle the scam network but also to validate Jimmy’s claims.