On September 22, provincial and municipal authorities in Svay Rieng and Bavet swooped in on a rented villa tucked away in Tabao Village, Bavet Commune. With its gates firmly shut day in and day out, few neighbors gave the place a second thought—unaware it was hiding a clandestine online scam operation behind closed doors.
The raid netted 14 suspects, including six Vietnamese women. Officers seized a large haul of gear on the spot: all-in-one desktop computers, PC towers, extra monitors, and a stack of mobile phones used to run the operation. The villa has since been taped off and locked down by police.
Local officials confirmed that all 14 individuals and the seized equipment have been handed over to the Anti-Cybercrime Office of the Svay Rieng Provincial Police for further investigation. In border towns like Bavet, these shuttered rental houses along quiet side alleys are a familiar sight—curtains drawn tight, rows of motorbikes parked outside, and locals completely oblivious to what is going on inside until police cars pull up and neighbors gather to see the commotion.
