According to AFP report on October 31, East African country Madagascar carried out surprise raids from August to September this year and successfully dismantled 13 telemarketing centers operated by Chinese citizens. The Madagascar Ministry of Justice confirmed that 148 Chinese citizens involved in the cases have been extradited back to China.
The fraud website involved mainly engaged in online love, cryptocurrency, and false investment fraud, targeting English-speaking countries such as the United States, Canada, and Pakistan. The head of Madagascar's criminal investigation department, Moiney, revealed that the criminal group initially hid in a villa area, and later took over an entire hotel in the capital, Antananarivo, as their fraud base.
The U.S. Department of Justice involved in the search operation stated that during the single-day operation, cryptocurrencies worth up to $52 million (approximately 346 million yuan) were seized, and more than 3,200 electronic devices were confiscated.
During the operation, about 20 citizens from countries such as Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda, and Zimbabwe were also detained. According to the victims, they were lured to the area through “high-paying business opportunities” on the social media platform Facebook. Upon arrival, they had their passports confiscated, and were forced to participate in the fraud scheme.
According to reports, the suspect involved in operating one of these online romance scams is a Malaysian man named Chui Kok Wa. Muin said that based on visa information, Chui Kok Wa arrived in Madagascar for the first time in 2024, having previously been in Cambodia.
The United States Department of Justice believes that due to law enforcement actions in Southeast Asia and conflicts along the Thai-Cambodia border, several criminal organizations linked to China and Malaysia will transfer their operations from Cambodia to Madagascar between early 2025 and mid-2026.
Additionally, reports indicate that in August of this year, 11 Chinese suspects arrested for online fraud were mysteriously released from the local prison. The incident involved the head of the local prison department.
