Belagavi: Police have rescued three Belagavi youths who were held captive in Cambodia and forced into cybercrime. Three accused who allegedly ran a fake job racket from Belagavi, which had trapped the youths, have been arrested.The victims — Akash Kaganikar, Omkar Lokhande and Sanskar Lokhande — were brought back to their native place a couple of days ago after being held for nearly a month. Police said the youths were lured with offers of lucrative data-entry jobs in Hong Kong, promising a monthly salary of Rs 1 lakh, through a local agent based in Belagavi. However, after leaving India, they were diverted to Cambodia.Once there, the youths were allegedly coerced into carrying out cyberfrauds targeting Indian citizens via platforms such as WhatsApp and Instagram. When they resisted, they were subjected to physical assault and threats, police said.Distressed by the situation, the victims’ parents approached Belagavi CEN police and lodged a complaint about two weeks ago. Acting on this, Belagavi city police commissioner Bhushan Borase contacted the Ministry of External Affairs and alerted the Indian Embassy in Cambodia.Subsequently, Cambodian law-enforcement authorities raided the fraudulent operation, uncovering a large cybercrime network in which around 50 youths from India and other countries were being forced into illegal activities.“All three youths were brought back safely to India a couple of days ago,” Borase told TOI.Further investigation revealed the fake job racket was run by three individuals based in Belagavi. Police said sustained efforts by inspector J M Kalimirchi and his team were key to rescuing the victims. Following the rescue, a special police team tracked down the absconding accused and arrested all three.
