Hyderabad: Union minister of state for home, Bandi Sanjay, played a key role in rescuing four youths—three from Telangana and one from Andhra Pradesh—who were held captive in Myanmar and forced to work in a cyber fraud racket under the guise of lucrative jobs in Bangkok.
Acting on the instructions of Union home minister Amit Shah, Sanjay coordinated with the ministry of external affairs to secure their safe return to India.
The victims had fallen prey to an elaborate scam orchestrated by brokers promising high-paying jobs abroad. Rakesh Reddy, one of the rescued individuals from Koheda in Hayathnagar mandal of Rangareddy district, shared his ordeal. Lured by the offer of a job paying lakhs per month, he was first taken to a broker’s agent in Jagtial, who assured him of a placement just 200 km from Bangkok.
Instead, he was trafficked to Myanmar, where he was forced to work 16 hours a day at a cyber fraud centre. “When I resisted, they stopped giving me food. After five months, they seized my passport and began mistreating me,” Rakesh said. Eventually, his Chinese handlers falsely accused him of entering the country illegally and handed him over to the military, resulting in his imprisonment.
While in captivity, Rakesh learned that Sanjay had previously helped repatriate several youths trapped in similar scams. His family reached out to the minister, and his father sent a letter seeking help. Sanjay acted swiftly, initiating the process for their return through diplomatic channels.
Rakesh, now back home, expressed gratitude to the minister for his timely intervention.
Along with Rakesh, three others were also rescued: A Shivashankar from Koheda, Kanuri Ganesh from Karimnagar district, and A Guru Yuva Kishore from AP.
Authorities have once again urged the public to remain cautious about overseas job offers that sound too good to be true and to verify credentials through official channels before making any commitments.