The distressing stories of Chinese families searching for missing relatives have emerged from Thailand, where numerous individuals have reportedly fallen prey to human trafficking schemes. One such case involved Sun Maoxing and his wife, Wang Weiju, both in their sixties, who have traveled from their home in Shandong province, China, to Bangkok in search of their missing son, Sun Baochao.
The couple has been desperate to find their 32-year-old son, whom they last saw in April when Sun’s mother passed away. Sun Maoxing shared his anguish, recalling how they did not have much time to speak with their son during that visit. “The last time I saw my son was April last year, when my mother died… I did not have a chance to talk to him much then,” Sun said. His wife, Wang, was equally distraught, explaining that their son was their only child. “We cannot live without him,” she said, standing outside the Chinese embassy in Bangkok, where they have been pleading for help.
The couple’s only contact with their son has been through WeChat messages, where Sun Baochao had requested money from them, mentioning that he was in Thailand. Thai authorities told the family that their son had taken a taxi from Suvarnabhumi Airport on January 1, but they could not locate him after that. The family has not received any updates on his case despite submitting documents to the embassy.
This is just one of many similar stories tied to the dangerous human trafficking operations running across Southeast Asia. Victims are often coerced into working in industrial-scale scam centers, where criminals operate fraudulent schemes that promise high-paying jobs but instead trap people in forced labor conditions. These scams are particularly prevalent in Myanmar, with some victims unknowingly lured into the country under the guise of securing employment opportunities.
The families of victims, including other Chinese nationals, have been reaching out to local authorities, including those in Hong Kong, in hopes of locating their loved ones. Andy Yu Tak-po, a former district council vice-chairman in Hong Kong, has been assisting families of victims since 2022. He has helped them petition both Hong Kong and Thai authorities to investigate the situation. Yu has also encouraged others with missing relatives in Southeast Asia to take similar action, even traveling to Bangkok to meet with the respective embassies.
In addition to Sun Baochao’s case, another family at the embassy shared their plight. Wang Yaxin, a 40-year-old man from Harbin, is searching for his 28-year-old cousin, who vanished after traveling to Thailand. Wang suspects that his cousin had fallen victim to a loan scam after communicating that he was in the Thai province of Tak, near the Myanmar border. The cousin had mentioned he was trying to secure a loan of approximately 1 million yuan ($136,416) in Bangkok, but his location went dark soon after, raising further concern for his well-being.
The issue of human trafficking and scam centers has once again gained widespread attention after the recent rescue of Chinese actor Wang Xing, who was freed from a scam compound along the Thailand-Myanmar border. Wang had been held captive for a week after falling victim to a fake job offer in the entertainment industry. His captors shaved his head and forced him into labor, such as typing for hours each day.
The Hong Kong authorities have been working to address these alarming cases. Chris Tang Ping-keung, Hong Kong’s Security Minister, clarified that none of the recent victims were abducted during their visits to Thailand. Instead, they were lured there with promises of well-paying job offers. According to Tang, 16 of the 28 cases his bureau had been alerted to resulted in the victims returning to Hong Kong, while the others were in contact and were safe but had lost their personal freedom.
The rising number of missing person cases tied to job scams in Southeast Asia highlights the increasing dangers of human trafficking. Families affected by these scams continue to seek justice and are calling for greater action from both local and international authorities to prevent further victims from falling into the hands of criminals.
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