63 telecom fraud suspects brought back to China from Cambodia

CHONGQING - A total of 63 telecom and Internet fraud suspects were brought back from Cambodia to southwestern China's Chongqing municipality Wednesday, local authorities said Thursday.

A woman from Chongqing recently reported to the police that she has been cheated by a man she knew through a match-making website in March last year. The man lied to her and said that she could earn high interest through depositing money into an account on an overseas gambling website.

The woman surnamed Meng transferred more than 500,000 yuan (around $72,700) to the overseas account and was able to withdraw her capital and interest in the first few days. But she later failed to withdraw the rest of her money and lost touch with the man.

Based on the clues, Chongqing police found dozens of relevant fraud cases involving over 5 million yuan in several provinces. Suspects involved in the cases were found in Cambodia.

Thanks to the guidance and support of the Chinese Embassy in Cambodia, the Chinese and Cambodian police set up an investigation team to identify the location and the structure the criminal gang and gather evidence.

On June 10, the Chinese and Cambodian police launched an operation in the city of Sihanoukville in Cambodia, busting three criminal gangs and detaining 68 suspects. Five other suspects at large were captured in the capital city of Phnom Penh a week later.