Ten Thai construction workers were arrested near the Thai-Cambodian border while attempting to return home after being deceived by employers in Cambodia. The incident occurred today, July 2, near the permanent checkpoint at Ban Khlong Luek in Sa Kaeo province.
The Burapha Task Force, along with the Aranyaprathet Special Task Force, apprehended the group as they climbed the roof of a private car park building. The workers had been lured to Phnom Penh with promises of construction work but were left without pay for months and had their identification cards confiscated.
The workers, in tears, revealed during questioning that they were recruited via Facebook with the offer of a daily wage of 300 baht (US$9). However, after a month of work, their employer failed to pay them and eventually abandoned them in Poipet.
They were asked to pay 3,000 baht (US$92) by guides to return home, but lacking funds, they resorted to risky methods, including climbing roofs to cross the border, leading to their capture by border patrol forces.
Initially, the group was taken to Khlong Luek Police Station for assistance and legal proceedings, reported KhaoSod.
In similar news, two Thai women were detained by security personnel in Sa Kaeo province after illegally crossing back into Thailand from Cambodia. The pair, who reportedly lost their passports due to heavy gambling losses, were caught scaling a barbed-wire fence at the border on June 21.
In response, officials from the Burapha Task Force, along with the Aranyaprathet Special Task Force and the 12th Ranger Regiment, ramped up surveillance near the Ban Khlong Luek border crossing in Pa Rai subdistrict, Aranyaprathet district.
During the night operation on June 21, police observed the women climbing over a concertina wire barrier from the Cambodian side. They were immediately taken into custody for questioning.
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