All over Phnom Penh, evidence of the clampdown on the scam centers that have become synonymous with Cambodia and its neighbor, Myanmar, is apparent. But stopping scam farms isn’t easy.
Photographer: Erika Piñeros/Bloomberg
After the Raids, Asia’s Billion-Dollar Scam Trade Flickers Back
Turns out, stopping scammers is tricky business.
After only four months in Cambodia, Chen Xian Jin reckons he can spot a scam manager when he sees one. Unlike other Chinese businessmen, they avoid flashy cars and jewelry and keep a low profile.
They come, at dusk, to the food stall Chen runs with his brother in Phnom Penh. Chen also runs deliveries, and despite the recent scam center crackdowns, he’s still sending plastic bags of pork and rice to his regular customers in the high building at the end of the street where the lights stay on at night.