How Vietnamese police stormed a notorious scam den in Cambodia

In 2024, the Lai Chau Provincial Police Department coordinated with Cambodian forces to dismantle a transnational fraud ring at the Venus2 complex in Bavet City, Svay Rieng Province.

The Ministry of Public Security highly praised the operation for significantly reducing the risk of thousands of victims being exploited while fostering strong cooperation between law enforcement agencies in Vietnam and Cambodia.

VietNamNet presents the series "Fighting Crime Abroad" to chronicle the police force’s journey in combating organized crime and the nerve-wracking moments of raiding criminal hideouts.

Colonel Pham Hai Dang, Deputy Director of Lai Chau Provincial Police, shared the tense and nerve-wracking moments during a five-hour raid to dismantle a transnational scam ring in Venus2 Complex, Bavet City, Svay Rieng Province, Cambodia.

Cross-border crackdown: A historic mission

In June 2024, following a complaint from Pham Van Bac, a barber from Tan Uyen District, Lai Chau Province, who lost 200 million VND (around 8,400 USD) in a fraudulent car purchase, Lai Chau police began investigating a cross-border online fraud network.

After two months of investigation, they arrested six suspects in Vietnam. The information gathered led the police to a more challenging mission - conducting a raid on Cambodian soil.

This unprecedented operation received close guidance from the Ministry of Public Security, as it posed significant legal, diplomatic, and operational challenges.

Colonel Pham Hai Dang, appointed head of the special task force (Operation 0924L), explained that previous cross-border operations had yielded limited results, making this mission particularly daunting.

On December 9, 2024, a task force comprising Lai Chau police and officers from the Ministry of Public Security flew to Pochentong Airport, Phnom Penh. After landing, they held a joint meeting with Cambodian authorities to finalize the raid strategy.

Convincing Cambodian police to cooperate was not easy. However, solid evidence and precise intelligence on the suspects' location at room 6-808, Venus2 Complex convinced them to join the mission.

Colonel Pham Hai Dang recalled, "Venus2 is a densely populated complex housing thousands of people, including hardened criminals. If not handled cautiously, the raid could spark chaos."

The operation plan emphasized swift and decisive action to avoid alarming the suspects or provoking the crowd.

At 5:00 am on December 11, 2024, the joint task force moved towards Bavet City. By 8:00 am, they surrounded the Venus2 Complex. At 10:00 am, the team stormed room 6-808, catching the 12 scammers off guard.

Colonel Dang recalled, "Their faces showed utter disbelief - they never expected Vietnamese police to come all the way to catch them."

The entire raid lasted 300 minutes, during which the task force remained on high alert, given the complex’s volatile environment. Once the suspects were secured and handed over to the Svay Rieng Provincial Police, the team finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Two weeks later, the Cambodian authorities handed over all 12 suspects to Lai Chau Provincial Police at the Moc Bai Border Gate. Initial confessions indicated that their criminal activities matched the six suspects previously indicted in Vietnam.

Further investigation revealed that the scam network had swindled nearly 4 billion VND (around 168,000 USD) from 52 victims across 29 provinces and cities.

The police froze numerous real estate transactions and monitored suspicious bank accounts linked to the ring, with over 100 billion VND (around 4.2 million USD) in questionable transfers identified.